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Building
^^^^^ The Life & Times of
Richard Charles Lee
Hong Kong: 1905-1983
Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2009 with funding from
Multicultural Canada; University of Toronto Libraries
http://www.archive.org/details/buildingbridgeslOOpoyv
Richard Charles Lee, 1964.
The Life & Times of
Richard Charles Lee
Hong Kong: 1905-1983
CALYAN
ViVIENNE POY
CTBuad 龜 Kong Resourct Centr*
First Published in Canada by
Calyan Publishing Ltd.
4151 Sheppard Avenue East, 2nd floor
Scarborough, Ontario
Canada M1S 1T4
ISBN 1-896501-04-4
Poy, Vivienne
Building Bridges, The Life & Times of Richard Charles Lee
Hong Kong, 1905-1983
Copyright © Calyan Publishing Ltd. 1998
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or
used in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of
the Publisher.
English Editors: Mary Adachi
Philippa Campsie
Chinese Editor: Simon S.H. So 蘇紹興
Production and Design: Justin Poy Media
Photograph of Author: Dr. Neville G. Poy
By the same author: A River Named Lee
All photographs are courtesy of the Lee family and the copyright in
all photographs belongs to the Lee family.
All inquiries regarding the motion picture, television and dramatic
rights for this book should be addressed to the Author's
representative:
Calyan Publishing Ltd.
4151 Sheppard Avenue East, 2nd floor
Scarborough, Ontario
Canada M1S 1T4
Representations as to the disposition of these rights are strictly
prohibited without express written consent.
Printed and bound in Canada
First printing September 1998
Contents
Acknowledgements xiii
Foreword by Prof. Arthur K.C. Li xv
Prologue XV i
A Farewell xvii
Chapter 1
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford 1
Childhood
Studies in Oxford
Friendships
Grandfather's Enterprises
Chapter 2
From Marriage in Hong Kong to Work in China 16
Father Meets Mother
The Wedding
Grandfather's Murder
Father as Head of the Family
Work in Guangzhou
Pioneers in Hainan
Return to Hong Kong
Chapter 3
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls to the Japanese 36
Defence of Hong Kong
The Battle of Hong Kong
Under Japanese Occupation
The Chinese Guerrillas
Father as a Resistance Fighter
Chapter 4
A Family on the Run 55
Retreat from Hong Kong
Life in Guilin
On the Run Again
Life in Chongqing
The Japanese Surrender
Chapter 5
After the War: Society Changes
71
Rationing and Shortages
Health Problems
The Refugee Families
Housing Problems
Refugees and Industry
Refugees and Education
Chapter 6
Launching as Recreation
The Lee Building and the Big House
Servants and Hawkers
Embassy Court
Chapter 7
Towards Racial Harmony: The Hong Kong Country Club 100
A Multi-racial Club
Towards Racial Harmony
Swimming at the Club
Chapter 8
The Lee Family: Business Projects 108
The Lee Theatre
Property Development
The Lee Gardens Hotel
Father and Hon Chiu
The Public Company
Grandmother's Funeral
Father and My British Education
McGill, Marriage and Family
With Father in China
Chapter 10
From Turbulence to Reform: A Vision for Higher Education 137
The Riots of 1967
Social Reforms
Father and Education
Higher Education
A New University
The Magical Years
83
Chapter 9
A Daughter Grows Up
122
Chapter 11
The Japanese Connection,
The Japanese School
Japan and China
Yamaichi Securities
154
Chapter 12
The Chinese Patriot
163
Solving the Water Shortage
Between Hong Kong and China
The Chinese Connections
The Garden Hotel
Chapter 13
The Businessman 181
A New Tunnel
The Telephone Company
The Gas Company
The Rothschild Bank
The Danish Connection
A Shipping Company
The Canadian Connection
Chapter 14
The Freemason: A Lifetime Commitment 197
Chapter 15
A Look into the Future 202
At Peace with Himself
Epilogue 213
Richard Charles Lee: A Career Summary 214
List of Father's Siblings 217
Map of China
Map of Guangdong Province
Map of Hong Kong
Endnotes
Bibliography
Photos
218
219
220
221
238
242
0
To those whose lives have been touched by my father
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I was able to write this biography of my father because of the gen-
erous help of many. In particular, I would like to thank Hon Chiu
Lee, Chairman of Hysan Development Co., without whose help this
book could not have been written. Yao Kang, Advisor of the Swire
Group, Hong Kong, and director of many Swire subsidiaries; Sir Quo
Wai Lee, Chairman of the Hang Seng Bank; Anna Li, Father's former
secretary; David K.P, Li, Chairman of the Bank of East Asia; Professor
Ma Lin, Chairman of Shaw College, The Chinese University of Hong
Kong; Shinishi Shiraishi, former deputy president of Yamaichi Securi-
ties Co. Ltd., Japan; C.T. Wu, Father's old friend and former employee
of the Lee family; Peter Yeung, Director of the Canada-Hong Kong
Resource Centre, University of Toronto- York University, Joint Centre
for Asia Pacific Studies; and Yoshiyuki Yoshioka, Secretary of the
Japanese Club, Hong Kong, must be thanked for their patience in
answering my many questions and for giving me a great deal of infor-
mation.
I would also like to thank the following who contributed signifi-
cantly to the content of this book: Barbara Bennett, Sir Jack and Lady
Peggy Cater, Dr. Chi Chao Chan, Chen Jixuan, Chieko Kato, Josephine
Chu, Professor Ruth Hayhoe, He Mingsi, He Jianli, Jenny Hoo, Huang
Maolan, Per Jorgensen, Albert Kwan, Chien Lee, J.S. Lee, Peter T.C.
Lee, Raymand Lee, Violet Lee, Professor Arthur K.C. Li, Aubrey K.S.
Li, Greta Li, Lian Weilin, Professor Paul Lin, Donald Liu, Percy
O'Brien, Reiko Ogata, William Poy, Lady May Ride, Elizabeth Ride,
Dr. Ray Rook, Ronald Ross, Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, Sing Sheng,
Joseph and Jeanne Tarn, George Todkill and Wang Kuang.
In my research, I was greatly helped by: Vincent Chen of the Campus
Planning and Building Committee of The Chinese University of Hong
Kong; Chen Rongsheng, Cultural Consul of the People's Republic of
China in Toronto; Frank Ching, Senior Editor at the Far Eastern Eco-
nomic Review; Y.C. Wan, Curator of the Hung On -To Memorial Library
of the University of Hong Kong Libraries; Johnson Li of the Canada-
Hong Kong Resource Centre; Sam-Chin Li, librarian of the Cheng
xttt
Yutung East Asian Library of the University of Toronto; Anne Cheng,
lawyer at the Bank of East Asia, Hong Kong; Tiffany K.W, Chan, grad-
uate of the University of Hong Kong; T.W. Chu, librarian of the
University of Hong Kong Libraries; Wandy Wong, secretary to the Chair-
man of Hysan Development Company; and Karen Diensdale, secretary
of the Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies of St. Michael's College,
University of Toronto.
I am grateful to University Professor Julia Ching, of the University
of Toronto, whose patience and guidance helped me clarify the form of
this manuscript and organize the massive amount of information; to
Professor Bernard Luk, co-chair of the Joint Centre for Asian Pacific
Studies, University of Toronto and York University, for his comments
and guidance; to Ku Hanzhao, scholar, and Kan Chung Yuen, a retired
civil servant of the former government of Hong Kong, who were kind
enough to read the manuscript and offer advice.
My special thanks to Peggy Ku for her tireless assistance, her skill in
drawing all the maps, and for the translation of this book into Chinese.
Special mention and thanks to my husband, Neville, who reshot many
of the old photographs as well as taking new ones, and to our son
Justin, who designed the cover, and oversaw its layout and publication.
xtv
FOREWORD
By any standard, Dr. Richard Charles Lee led an incredible and
remarkable life. He lived through the tumultuous events of mod-
ern Chinese history and played a major role in the making of Hong
Kong as we know it today ― a vibrant international city.
Born into an aristocratic Hong Kong family, Oxford educated and
for his time, widely travelled, he took charge of a dynastic business
empire at a very young age. His vision of a modern China, including
the need for international ties and friendships and the role that Hong
Kong should play, is as relevant for the future as it was in his day. His
love for the people of Hong Kong and the many significant major con-
tributions that he made to improve their lives, in housing, education,
welfare as well as in many other areas are well documented here in this
personal account by his daughter Vivienne Poy. She shares with us the
story of a gifted and intelligent man whose life was not without per-
sonal tragedies, like the untimely loss of both his father and his son. Dr.
Lee was compassionate without being sentimental, and maintained a
simple lifestyle despite his wealth.
Dr. Lee was a decisive man of very strong principles. Few people
have ever resigned, as he did, from the Executive Council of the Hong
Kong Government. He believed in justice and righteousness, blending
Confucianism with the best from the West.
As Vivienne playfully remarks, when people speculated long ago
that Dr. Lee would be the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong after the
resumption of Chinese sovereignty in 1997, little did they realise that
he would have been 92 years old! However, the serious point is that
speculation stemmed from hope, admiration and a yearning for some-
one of his stature and proven track record to take charge of Hong
Kong. Perhaps, Dr. R.C. Lee was the best Governor or Chief Executive
that Hong Kong never had.
Arthur K.C. Li
Vice-Chancellor
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
March 1998
XV
PROLOGUE
hat kind of a man was Richard Charles Lee, my father? He was a
stern man, rather set in his ways, punctual, disciplined. He always
expected a lot of himself. He was a typical Chinese father who never put
us on his knees and cuddled us as children, but he always showed that he
cared and he always made sure we were well looked after. People who
didn't know him were often afraid of him because he looked so solemn
when he was not smiling. He was actually very affable and laughed a lot-
However, his self-image was that of a very serious man, so he almost never
smiled when he knew a photograph was being taken of him. He was hon-
est, intelligent, inquisitive, hard-working and kind, and he would go out of
his way to help others. He was a man of great generosity to others, but was
very frugal towards himself. He was a man of integrity and principle who
was willing to die for his beliefs. He was public-spirited and cared for the
people and the society he lived in. As I could see at his funeral, those who
came to pay their respects to him reflected the life he had lived.
Father was a civil engineer by training. He was a builder both literally
and metaphorically. He built two kinds of bridges in his life: those made of
steel and concrete and those made of human kindness. Of the two, the most
important were the human bridges he built for Hong Kong and for China.
Except for one year, I have been away from Hong Kong since 1956 and
because of that, I missed a great deal of what went on in his life. I realize
that he belonged not just to his family, but to Hong Kong, its society and
its people. He was a part of the history of Hong Kong. For some time I have
been very curious about his life, and now I am ready to write about it.
This is an account of Father's life based on my parents' recollections and
their correspondence, research and interviews with those close to Father,
my own observations and personal experience, and my relationship with
him. We are a family of four children, two boys and two girls. Each of us,
because of our diverse personalities, had a very different kind of relation-
ship with our father. In this book, I am speaking from my own perspective.
In order to protect the privacy of the rest of my family, I will mention them
from time to time, but they will not play a major role in this account.
Vivienne Poy, Toronto, 1997
xvt
A FAREWELL
July 11, 1983, was one of Hong Kong's typical hot summer days. By
early morning, the sun was blazing. Mother, my brother, sister
and I, the in-laws and the grandchildren were all up very early. We
dressed in black and headed for the Hong Kong Funeral Home. It was
the day of Father's funeral.
We had spent the previous few days at the funeral home where more
than three thousand people came to pay their last respects. In accor-
dance with Chinese custom, when guests approached the casket and
the altar where the photograph of Father was displayed, they bowed
three times, and our entire family, in black mourning robes provided
by the funeral home, rose and bowed in unison to thank them. One
day, we had to be at the funeral home unusually early because some of
the Legislative and Executive Council members wanted to pay their
respects before flying to Beijing for talks with China. On the morning
of July 11, guests started arriving at eight in the morning, and many
stayed for the service scheduled to start at ten.
It was obvious to anyone present that Father was not an ordinary
man. On one side of his photograph was the largest wreath in the hall,
from China's newly elected president, Li Xiannian; on the other side
was the wreath from the governor of Hong Kong, Sir Edward Youde.
Other prominently displayed wreaths were from the vice-chairman of
the Military Commission, Yang Shangkun; vice-premier of the State
Council, Gu Mu; Ji Pengfei, standing committee member of the Cen-
tral Advisory Commission; member of the Central Committee of the
Communist Party Xi Zhongxun; Ren Zhongyi, first secretary of the
Guangdong Provincial Committee; the political commissar of the Peo-
ple's Liberation Army, Yu Qiuli; the governor of Guangdong, Liang
Lingguang; the chief secretary of the Hong Kong government, Sir
Philip Hadden-Cave; and many prominent citizens of Hong Kong.
The guests coming down the aisle represented a cross-section of the
population. Among the many friends and family who came to pay their
last respects were dignitaries from Hong Kong and China, including the
chairman of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, Michael Sandberg; the
managing director of Hong Kong Land, Trevor Bedford; Financial Secre-
tary Sir John Brembridge; Chairman of the Urban Council, Hilton
xvu
Cheongleen; Executive Councillors Dr. Harry Fang and T.S. Lo; Leg-
islative Councillors Francis Tien and Dr. Rayson Huang; as well as Sir
Shiukin Tang and film magnate Sir Run Run Shaw. Two former direc-
tors of the local branch of the Xinhua News Agency, Wang Kuang and
Lian Weilin, came from Beijing and Guangzhou to attend the funeral.
What I remember most of all was the sight of many ordinary people
there. Some were our former employees; I knew some of them but not
all. They were there because their lives had in some way been touched
by Father.
The ten pallbearers were: Fei Yiming, publisher of Ta Kung Pao; Chu-
sei Yamada, Japanese Consul-General; Sir Yuetkeung Kan, Executive
Councillor; Professor Ma Lin, Vice-Chancellor of The Chinese Universi-
ty of Hong Kong; friends P.C. Woo and F.S. Li; Arthur Gomes, the most
senior mason of the Irish Constitution in the Far East; N.J. Gillanders,
long-time Bursar of the University of Hong Kong; Shum Waiyau, pub-
lisher of Wah Kin Yat Po; and Xinhua News Agency chief Xu Jiatun,
who obtained special permission from Beijing to be a pallbearer.
The funeral was attended by fifteen hundred people. The service was
conducted according to Christian rites by Canon Frank Lin of St. Mary's
Church in Causeway Bay, where Father had been a member for more
than twenty years. Before the sermon, an old friend of our family, P.C.
Woo, gave a short account of Father's life, a life that was not only suc-
cessful, but interesting, unusual and most of all, filled with kindness.
In a tribute to Father on behalf of Sir Edward Youde, the governor,
who had left for talks in Beijing early that morning, acting governor Sir
Philip Hadden-Cave said that with Father's passing, Hong Kong had lost
"one of the major public figures of its post-war history,'" Professor Ma
Lin, vice-chancellor of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, said that
Father's death was a great loss to the university, since he was involved in
its foundation well before the university came into being. In fact, Father
had always considered The Chinese University as one of his "children."
Friends and business associates described Father as "a man of vision," "a
sound man with great influence" and "the backbone" of the Lee family.
China's leaders referred to Father as an "old friend" and a "patriot. "'
The man on the street lamented the loss of a good man who cared
about the ordinary people of Hong Kong. And I lost a loving father.
xvttt
Building
^^^^.^ The Life & Times of
Richard Charles Lee
Hong Kong: 1905-1983
1
The Young Man:
From Hong Kong To
Oxford
Hong Kong, at the turn of the century, was a city of palaces and
more magnificent than the hillside Italian city of Genoa. Above
the city of Victoria was a suburb hanging in the clouds of the Peak
where the wealthy British lived. This was how American Eliza
Ruhamah Scidmore described Hong Kong in her book China: Long
lived Empire, published in 1900. A new hospital for Europeans had
just opened on the Peak, and a newspaper, the South China Morning
Post, had been launched. Only Europeans were permitted to live on
the Peak, with the exception of Sir Robert Hotung's family.
At the foot of the hill, the first trams were put into service in
1904, all single-deckers, open to the elements. The carriages that
used to fill the streets had vanished, and the coach houses of great
mansions stood empty. Everyone went about by rickshaw or sedan
chair, and carts were pulled by oxen or water buffalo. One could
hear the sighs of coolies as they made their way along the streets,
shoulders straining under their heavy loads on bamboo poles. 丁 he
motor car had yet to reach Hong Kong.
The population of the Colony had reached over 325,000, the
majority being Chinese. Water shortages were a perennial problem
2 Building Bridges
and new and bigger reservoirs were being planned. In 1901, the
drought was so severe that water had to be shipped from the New
Territories to Victoria.
The port of Hong Kong was expanding, and huge warehouses,
known as godowns, lined the Kowloon waterfront. The number of
ships entering the harbour increased 60 per cent from the previous
ten years. Industries such as sugar refineries, flour mills, cotton mills
and cement works had sprung up. Hong Kong Land was progressing
with its land reclamation in Central (commercial section of Victoria),
and the area was dotted with new four or five-storey buildings. Busi-
nesses were controlled by the hongs, such as Jardine Matheson and
Butterfield & Swire in shipping, the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank
in banking, and John Swire's Taikoo in sugar refinery.
While the hongs were investing their opium fortunes in legitimate
businesses, the government derived an annual revenue of about
$2 million from the sale of the opium monopoly to the highest
bidders, despite the strong opposition to the drug in Britain. Opium
smoking was so popular among the Chinese that it was estimated
that one in ten men was an opium smoker. Even though there was a
gradual reduction of divans (establishments where Chinese men gath-
ered to smoke opium) and no new licences were sold by the Hong
Kong government after 1910, the sale of opium remained legal until
1945, and licences continued to be sold to the highest bidder by the
Portuguese government in Macao.
The population of Hong Kong lived in two separate communities,
the Chinese and the non-Chinese, each having very little to do with
the other except at work. The Chinese men wore their hair in queues
(pigtails) in Manchu style, and few dressed in Western clothes. Most
of them wore mandarin jackets and pants or long gowns, with soft
black shoes. They did not take part in foreign sport and none went
swimming. The vast majority of them had no contact with Europeans
at all. The old men spent time taking their caged birds for an airing
outdoors, and the youngsters liked to kick a shuttlecock or fly a kite.
In the evening, one could hear the clatter of mah jong, the favourite
game of the Chinese.
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford
As for the Chinese women, with the exception of petty hawkers,
sampan women, scavengers and seamstresses, none went out onto the
streets. The upper-class women had bound feet and never left their
family compounds. The poorer classes wore cotton clothes like pyja-
mas, while the upper-class ladies wore beautifully embroidered pants,
skirts and mandarin jackets.
Despite the description of Hong Kong as a city of palaces, it was,
for the Chinese population, a very unhygenic place in which to live.
Plague was endemic and malaria was widespread. Officers of the
sanitary teams charged with rat-proofing houses and spraying mos-
quito breeding grounds were discovered, by an enquiry in 1907, to
have made small fortunes by evading the law, in collusion with prop-
erty owners and building contractors. Sanitary problems magnified
racial prejudice, and demands were made for separate residential
areas to be set aside for Westerners and Chinese. Following the cre-
ation of the Peak reservation, an ordinance in 1902 set aside an area
in Kowloon for the Europeans, since the government believed the
Chinese could not be trusted to keep the mosquito population down.
However, exceptions were made by Foreign Secretary Joseph Cham-
berlain, who, on approval of a separate area for "people of clean
habits," added that Chinese of good standing should be permitted
residence there.
The Chinese population had come a long way since Hong Kong
became a British colony in 1841. Many of its enterprising members
had become wealthy. This new merchant class was recognized by the
colonial government as leaders in their community due to their com-
mercial success and their leadership in organizations such as the Tung
Wah Hospital, a charitable organization which became the centre of
Chinese power in the Colony. Despite the segregation in most schools,
Queen's College encouraged the enrollment of boys of different nation-
alities. Chinese students from this school had the advantage of learning
Western culture and the Western way of doing business.
This was the Hong Kong into which Father was born.
4 Building Bridges
Childhood
On March 7, 1905, concubine Cheung Mun Hee (Second Lady) of
Grandfather Lee Hysan, gave birth to a son, Ming Chak, my father.
He was not only the eldest son, but also the first surviving child in the
family, as an older sister born to Grandfather's wife (Grandmother)
died soon after birth. When Second Lady became pregnant, there was
great excitement because Grandfather had been married for seven
years and still did not have a child. A European midwife was arranged
for the delivery, since Grandfather didn't feel that he could take any
more chances after the death of his first child. It was believed that
European midwives were cleaner and more knowledgeable than their
Chinese counterparts.
When Father was born. Grandfather was delighted that he finally
had an heir. Father's birth was also regarded as a lucky omen for the
family, for from then on, Grandfather's import-export business flour-
ished. His company, Nam Hung Shipping Co., carried goods from
China to Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaya and Rangoon. He became
a well-known and respected merchant of the Nam Pak Hong Business
Association in Hong Kong, an association of merchants who traded
between China and Southeast Asia.
According to Chinese custom, when a concubine has a son and the
wife does not, the son is taken from his birth mother to live with the
wife, in order to bring her luck and fertility. This was the case with
Father, who grew up in Grandmother's household. He did indeed
bring her luck, for after the birth of a second son by Second Lady,
Grandmother gave birth to two sons and two daughters.
Father had a very special relationship with Grandmother because
he grew up in her household, and she came to treat him as her own.
She respected his judgment and that became important for the entire
family after Grandfather died.
Father was a healthy child, alert and sturdy, with a narrow face
and a small stature like his mother, Second Lady. He had strong,
square hands, and his skin was as dark and shiny as Grandfather's.
He probably wore his hair in a queue when he was very young, as
Grandfather did, since it wasn't until the Revolution of 1911 that
Chinese men abandoned this custom.
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford
As a small child, Father lived in Hong Kong and sometimes visited
his grandparents, my great-grandparents, in China. At the time,
Great-grandparents lived in our ancestral village, Garlieu, in the
south of Guangdong province. Father once told me that Great-grand-
parents used to have only two meals a day, one early in the morning
and the other between four or five in the afternoon. It seemed very-
strange to me, but that was the habit of the Chinese people who lived
in the countryside. I'm sure it was also because food was scarce. As
Grandfather became more prosperous, it was rumoured that bandits
intended to kidnap his parents, so he built a house for them in Sun-
wui city, not far from Garlieu.
Being the eldest son, Father was not only important to Grandfather,
he was doted on by Great-grandparents. As a show of affection, Great-
grandfather used to feed Father all the time when they were together,
and even stuffed chicken legs in his mouth when he was asleep! He also
told Father about the dreadful trip in a sailing ship across the Pacific to
the Golden Mountain (San Francisco) during the gold rush, and the life
of Chinese people in America. Even though Grandfather was the second
son of Great-grandparents, Father's position in the family was consid-
ered so important that, when Great-grandfather died, and his body
travelled in a boat along the river that ran past Garlieu village, Father
sat in the front of the boat and Grandfather sat at the back, with the
coffin in the middle. This was how the body was transported to the bur-
ial place according to our village custom.
Because of repeated outbreaks of plague in Hong Kong, Grand-
father moved his family to Macao when Father was five years old.
Most of the family remained there until 1918, although Grandfa-
ther continued to work in Hong Kong. As a well-educated man, he
was concerned about the education of his children, both sons and
daughters, so he hired a well-known Chinese teacher, Chen Zibao,
to teach them.
As time went on, Grandfather invested in many successful busi-
nesses, and became one of the wealthiest men in the Colony. He took
a second and later on a third concubine (Third Lady and Fourth
Lady). According to Chinese custom in those days, it was considered
a sign of wealth to have many concubines and children. The number
6 Building Bridges
of children in the family increased, and Grandfather was good to
them all. Realizing the importance of an English education for his
children in the British Colony, Grandfather brought Father back to
Hong Kong from Macao, and enrolled him in Queen's College, one
of the best-known colonial schools at that time, regarded as the Har-
row or Eton of the Far East.
Grandfather had learned English in San Francisco as a child, dur-
ing the years he lived there with his father. After they returned to
China, Great-grandfather had the foresight to enroll Grandfather in
Queen's College in Hong Kong in order to continue his English edu-
cation, where he was able to make friends who became important to
him in later life. He wanted the same advantages for his children.
Studies in Oxford
Since he was well acquainted with the English educational system,
Grandfather thought it best for his children to send them to school in
England so that they could be totally immersed in the English tradi-
tion. At the same time, they would have the opportunity to make
friends who could help them later on in life. In 1917, at the age of
twelve, Father and his third brother were sent to study in England
with a governess. They lived at the home of a Mr. Churchill, and were
tutored there in preparation for university entrance. It was then that
they acquired their English names: Father became Richard Charles
and Third Uncle became Harold. Several years later, two younger sis-
ters were also sent to England for schooling. Once the children went
to England, they were expected to stay until they finished their edu-
cation. The boys were told before they left that if they married
non-Chinese while they were away, they would be automatically dis-
inherited.
Father was fond of Mr. Churchill, whom he referred to as "Old
Man Churchill" to us, and with whom he continued to correspond
until Mr. Churchill died. Even when Mr. Churchill began to lose his
sight, he continued to write to Father, with some help, I am sure. I
remember seeing his scribbles.
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford
7
By the 1920s, it was fashionable for the more adventurous and
wealthy Chinese parents to send their children abroad to school ― to
France, Germany, England and Japan. These students were usually of
university age. Most of the Chinese students from Hong Kong went
to England. The only mode of travel was by ship via the Suez Canal,
and the long trip took weeks.
In a letter to his old friend and neighbour in Macao, Father wrote
about the Chinese he met:
Since my arrival in England, 1 have been well. Generally,
the climate and life here are quite suitable to the Chinese ...
In the town of Oxford, there were less than ten Chinese stu-
dents including myself ... There are two Chinese in town,
by the names of Zhou and Chen, from the village of Hoip-
ing,' who are to be admired. They arrived here, by mistake,
eleven years ago. They wanted to go to London, Ontario,
Canada, to make a living. However, the tickets that were
bought for them were incorrect, and neither knew that
there were two Londons in the world. When they arrived in
London, England, no relatives came to meet their boat, and
they knew something was wrong. Not knowing whether to
laugh or to cry, they realized they had arrived in a different
part of the world, with no friends and with very little
money. A few days later, they made their way to Oxford,
and opened a laundry establishment. They worked hard
and had become very well known for the best laundry ser-
vice. Almost all the students in Oxford send their laundry
to them. It shows that, for those who are abroad, with hard
work, they will succeed. Being very busy, I am sorry I don't
see them as often as I would like, and have forgotten their
first names. These two can put many present-day overseas
Chinese students to shame.
He went on to say that despite the importance the parents put on
education, many of the Chinese students in England were not really
interested in studying:
8 Building Bridges
The majority of the present-day overseas Chinese students
have no idea how difficult it is to make a living. They are
generally lazy, and are constantly complaining how diffi-
cult the subjects are, so they often skip the examinations.
But, fearing rebukes from their parents, they enroll into
colleges that do not have examinations and anyone can be
accepted. There are many such colleges in both towns of
Oxford and Cambridge. These students will write home to
say that they have entered Oxford or Cambridge Universi-
ties, and their parents would not know any better. Their
parents will send them money which they will spend lav-
ishly. In three years' time, they will buy a degree to return
to China. 丁 here is usually a lot of fanfare when these stu-
dents return home, but if they are ever asked, by someone
who knows, which university they graduated from, Oxford
or Cambridge, they would be in trouble ...
China is so weak among so many strong nations, if the
younger generation has no ability, how can we save China?
These students are not capable of thinking. There are so
many in China who want to study, but their families can-
not afford to send them abroad. Those who have the
chance to go abroad and not study hard are to be pitied.
And he concluded on a personal note:
Oxfordshire has the climate that makes people tired. Many
go to the seaside during the summer to avoid illness. I will
be going away and will return to Oxford at the end of the
summer.'
We can tell from this letter that Father's lifelong wish to help China
and the Chinese people was already emerging.
In 1923, Father entered Pembroke College, Oxford, to study Civil
Engineering, where he was known to the other undergraduates as
Dickie Lee. Percy O'Brien, who entered Pembroke in 1924 to read
Chemistry, remembers Father as a sprightly individual who was always
happy and smiling. He walked quickly, was always in a hurry, and very
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford
9
punctual. He was well dressed and carried a watch chain across his
waistcoat. Father studied excessively hard and spent hours reading in
the Radcliffe Science Library. At times he showed O'Brien some of his
studies on the mathematics of engineering which O'Brien found very
obtuse and difficult to understand/
By the time he entered Pembroke, Father was already used to life
in England, but life in the colleges was a different experience.
Undergraduate behaviour was still controlled by the statute de
Moribus Conformandis of 1636, even though rules had been modi-
fied. Colleges exacted small gate fines from those who were not
back in college by a certain hour in the evening. Although tobacco
could be purchased (its sale having been banned in 1636), no under-
graduate was allowed to smoke in academic dress. A rule
prohibiting students from keeping motor cars had been rescinded,
and so Father was able to own one. Students were not allowed to
play billiards before one o'clock in the afternoon or after ten o'clock
at night, and they were forbidden to loiter at stage doors, attend
public race meetings or take part in shooting and other sports. Their
opportunities for dancing, drinking and dining were carefully regu-
lated. A male undergraduate was not allowed to enter the room of
a female undergraduate, but a female student was allowed to enter
the room of a male with a chaperone, with special leave from the
head of her college.'
Pembroke had some well-established customs that no longer exist.
Undergraduates were obliged to attend college chapel daily at eight
o'clock in the morning under the threat of a fine of two shillings and
sixpence. Less onerous was the penalty for talking "shop" in the hall.
丁 he perpetrator could be challenged to drink one or more pints of
beer without pause from a tankard marked by pegs within, to bring
the ego down a peg or two.''
Father was privileged to have lodgings in the Old Quadrangle,
regarded as superior by the students. His rooms were on the ground
floor, with a bedroom, a small pantry and a fairly large sitting/din-
ing/study room with a fireplace. The communal rooms were in the back
of the Quadrangle, and the undergraduates sometimes had to trudge
through snow and ice in the winter to reach them. There was no college
10 Building Bridges
nurse or doctor in those days; the undergraduates were supposed to be
tough. In the evening, the gates were closed at nine o'clock when the
Old Town clock chimed. Latecomers were fined, so the students found
ways of climbing into the residences without being caught.'
The residences were taken care of by "scouts," who were essential
to college life. Each scout was in charge of a "staircase," meaning a
set of rooms that branched off from a staircase. In some respects, a
scout was like a servant, but in many ways, he was more like a "wife
and parent" to his men. He cared for their general welfare, looked
after them when they were ill, advised them, got them out of trouble
and put them to bed when they were drunk. Father was very fortunate
to have a fine scout named Fred. Fred would light Father's fire, clean
his room, make his bed and do his laundry. It was also Fred's duty to
make Father's breakfast and lunch and look after his parties.
The Master of Pembroke during Father's time was Dr. Holmes
Dudden, a man of great distinction and ability, a very good adminis-
trator and an author of some note. To be invited to dine at Pembroke
was much sought after in the 1920s, because of its fine table and
excellent wines.
Friendships
During his university days, Father made some very good friends
with whom he kept in touch all his life. Many became prominent in
their own countries. One was Percy O'Brien, who later became a
tutor and Fellow of Pembroke. Until he retired in 1974, he was Direc-
tor of the Nuffield Department of Clinical Biochemistry in the
Oxford Medical School.
Another was Qian Changzhao, who became an important official in
China under the Nationalist leader Chiang Kaishek. Both Qian and
Father subsequently devoted themselves to the betterment of the lives of
the Chinese. While Father spent most of his life in Hong Kong, Qian
remained in China. After the Nationalist government was ousted, Qian
served the government of the People's Republic of China. Qian was per-
secuted during the Cultural Revolution. In the early 1960s, the two men
were able to resume a friendship that had been interrupted during the
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford 1 1
Chinese civil war (1945-1949) and the subsequent restrictions on its
population imposed by the Chinese government.
Other schoolmates were Liu Jia, later Chiang Kaishek's represen-
tative at the United Nations in the 1950s, and Konosuke Koike,
a graduate of Tokyo University, who later became chairman of
Yamaichi Securities. Although Father lost contact with Koike because
of the Pacific War, the two men were able to pick up where they left
off in the late 1960s.
The one friend Father made who was not a student at Oxford was
Ley On, whom we came to call Uncle. Ley On was adopted by a fam-
ily without a son, in our ancestral village. He was badly treated, so
he sold himself as an indentured labourer to North America when he
was in his teens. When his contract was over, he stowed away on an
ocean liner, not knowing where it was going. He arrived in France
and found himself unable to communicate with anyone, so he board-
ed a boat to an English-speaking country, again as a stowaway, and
arrived in London. This was around the same time Father and Third
Uncle were in England. Ley On was an enterprising young man who
started a small Chinese restaurant in London, catering mainly to
overseas Chinese students.
Father and his young friends would go to Ley On's restaurant
whenever they were in London. Father used to tell me that Ley On
made his tofu with an ingredient that gave his patrons diarrhea!
Despite that, the two young men became good friends. I am sure
Father admired Ley On for his diligence and entrepreneurial spirit.
Ley On went on to become a successful restaurateur in London and
the owner of many racehorses. His restaurant was frequented by
famous movie stars who befriended him. Probably because he had a
classic Chinese face ― with high cheekbones and slanted eyes ― and
was tall and dark-skinned, he was asked to act in small parts in Hol-
lywood movies. I first met him when he stayed with us in Hong Kong
in the early 1950s, by which time he had become an alcoholic. I
remember Father telling him, "It's a custom in Hong Kong not to
drink before sundown!"
All Oxford undergraduates boarded in the colleges, and they were
required to have dinner with the Master and the fellows in the hall.
12 Building Bridges
In fact, although undergraduates were free to choose whether they
wanted to attend the lectures, they were strictly advised to attend the
dinners. If an undergraduate's annual attendance at the dinners was
not sufficient, he would lose the right to sit for examinations. At each
table, ten to twelve undergraduates who had joined the college in the
same year would sit together. In spite of the fact that the subjects they
took were different, they usually became good friends, bonded by the
habit of eating meals at the same table.
Konosuke Koike entered Pembroke College in 1923. Since he and
Father both entered in the same year, they sat at the same table for
dinners. They played sports together and became close friends. In
winter, when the British students played rugby, Father and Koike
would go to the gymnasium to box.'" Boxing was a favourite sport of
many Pembroke men. Father loved the sport even though he broke
his nose doing it.
Father had high ideals and was a leader among men. He became
President of the Chinese Students' Union of Europe in 1925. He
already knew then that he would spend his life helping his country-
men. He kept all the menus of the Union dinners on which he and his
fellow students sketched their plans for a brave new China.
Grandfather's Enterprises
While Father was in England, Grandfather's businesses continued
to prosper. He became one of the wealthiest men in Hong Kong and
a well-respected citizen in the community. Real-estate development
became his main business, and he purchased land and built row-
houses, mainly for the Chinese middle class in Hong Kong. He also
invested in many companies in Hong Kong, such as the China Sugar
Refinery, Hong Kong Electric, the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank,
and the Dairy Farm Ice and Cold Storage Co., and he became a major
shareholder and a member of the consulting team of China Light &
Power Company, which supplied electricity to south China and Hong
Kong. Unfortunately, he also invested in the Yue Sing firm, which
held the opium monopoly from 1924 from the Portuguese govern-
ment of Macao, and this caused his misfortune later.
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford 13
Around the time of the First World War, while Father was in Eng-
land, Grandfather purchased a large piece of land on the side of a hill
on Kennedy Road with the intention of building a home for his fam-
ily. Because of the war and labour problems, the house was not built
until 1920. It was designed and constructed by Palmer and Turner,
the same firm that designed the head office of the Hong Kong and
Shanghai Bank on the Bund in Shanghai. The designs of the two
buildings were rather similar. The family home, called Dai Uk,
meaning the Big House, was one of the grandest homes in Hong
Kong. Father did not see the Big House until he returned to Hong
Kong in 1927.
The Big House commanded a magnificent view of Hong Kong
Harbour. The beautiful gardens with their fountains, pagodas, artifi-
cial hills and caves, bamboo groves, chicken coops and vegetable
plots were surrounded by high walls. At the main gate stood a guard
house where a tall Sikh kept watch with a shotgun. Sikhs were tradi-
tionally hired as guards in Hong Kong because the Chinese regarded
them as fierce-looking. Our guard's family lived in their own com-
pound beside the garden of the fountain of the Goddess of Mercy.
The Big House consisted of three floors. The second and the third
floors were living quarters for the family, with large balconies and a
kitchen on each floor. For family meals, the men were served on the
second floor, and the women and children on the third floor. The
ground floor was reserved for entertaining. It consisted of an enor-
mous front hall, the library, the bamboo room and other entertaining
rooms and the main kitchen in the back. From the front hall, one
walked out onto the terrace to a panoramic view of the Hong Kong
harbour. The house was filled with objets d'art from all over the
world.
Besides being grand, the Big House was also a home away from
home for all the Lee relatives or visitors from our ancestral village.
There were many guest rooms behind the entertainment rooms on the
ground floor, and anyone who needed a place to stay or a good meal
was welcomed. Grandfather was known for his generosity which
extended to distant relatives. Throughout his life, he made sure that
his siblings were financially secure, and that all his nieces and
14 Building Bridges
nephews were in good schools or were given good jobs. His sons car-
ried on this tradition after his death.
The land where the Big House stood was so large that Grandfather
decided to erect another building at the other end of the property
higher up on the hill. It was a three-storey apartment built in the same
style as the Big House, with a wide central staircase, and large bal-
conies for each apartment. This was called Lee Hong, meaning Lee
Building, and was rented to tenants during Grandfather's lifetime. I
wonder whether at the time Grandfather could foresee that, as his
family expanded, the Lee Building would be used by them as well.
My family lived in both the Big House and the Lee Building until the
beginning of the 1950s.
In 1920, experts from England went to Hong Kong to investigate
land development around the harbour. In their opinion, the develop-
ment in the west had reached its limits, and the Colony's future lay in
the east around Kowloon Bay. Grandfather then looked into buying
land in that area for housing development. Hong Kong island was
difficult to build on because of the hilly terrain. In order to build row-
housing, hills had to be levelled and the soil used for landfill to create
more flat land. In January 1924, Grandfather made the most high-
profile purchase of his life. He bought East Point Hill from John
William Buchanan Jardine for the sum of $3,850,960.35. East Point
Hill was the original homestead, offices and godowns of the Jardine
taipans. The property also included the homes of the number one and
number two taipans, with a riding stable in between. The original
agreement with the government was to use the soil on East Point Hill
for land reclamation in North Point, but the government reneged on
the agreement, so development was stalled. In the meantime, in order
to earn income from the property, Grandfather turned it into a gar-
den and amusement park for the Chinese, called The Lee Gardens.
The Chinese population needed recreation areas, since parks built by
the government were restrictive. The Lee Gardens became the year-
round pleasure ground for the Chinese and was financially very
successful. The taipans' houses became restaurants.
Grandfather planned ahead for his family. In 1925, he established
the Lee Hysan Estate Company, which owned East Point Hill and a
The Young Man: From Hong Kong to Oxford 15
number of other properties. He then continued to develop the areas
in the vicinity of The Lee Gardens, clearing slums and building wide
streets and well-constructed houses.
As an entrepreneur, Grandfather was always looking into new
businesses. He loved Chinese opera, and felt that there was a need for
a new type of staging that would make changing scenery in a Chinese
opera easier. In 1926, he built the Lee Theatre on Percival Street and
equipped it with a revolving stage which allowed the realistic touch
of scenery changes as the actors walked along. Chinese opera in the
Cantonese vernacular was the most popular type of entertainment,
and the theatre became hugely successful. The theatre had a beautiful
high dome, decorated with dragon designs and lights, and a movie
screen was subsequently added. Many Chinese opera stars started
their careers at the Lee Theatre.
2
From Marriage
In Hong Kong
To Work In China
Upon graduation from Oxford University in 1927, Father
returned to Hong Kong at the age of twenty-two, after having
been away for ten years. His plan was to go back to England to do
his practical training. Grandfather was delighted to have his eldest
son back, and this time, he wanted to see his son get married before
leaving again. The word was out, and many girls were brought to
Grandmother for her approval.
The Hong Kong Father returned to was a society that he did not
remember. He had been treated as an equal in England, and now he
was back in a colony where the British still believed that they were
the master race of Asia. There was segregation in every facet of life
in the Colony. In hospitals and the Hong Kong civil service, segrega-
tion persisted until the Second World War. An example was the
Matilda Hospital on the Peak, which in 1940 refused to admit an
American woman because she was married to a Chinese. It was not
until 1942 that the civil service dropped the demand that all candi-
dates for positions should be of pure European descent. As late as
1992, all senior posts in the civil service were held by British officers.
It was the policy of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank not to have
16
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 17
Chinese on the board, and many British firms forbade employees to
marry non-British women.
Father was a diligent student who benefited from the British liber-
al education that taught the equality of men. Therefore, when he
returned to Hong Kong, he could not accept the stigma of being a sec-
ond-class citizen. Having been used to riding in England, Father
wanted to join the Hong Kong Jockey Club, but was refused entry
because he was Chinese. Grandfather immediately said, "We don't
need them. We will start a Chinese Jockey Club." On hearing that,
Father was immediately allowed to ride there, because the Hong
Kong Jockey Club depended on the income from bets placed by the
Chinese population.
Hong Kong's colonial snobbery was described by Ely Kadoorie, a
successful merchant in Shanghai as well as in Hong Kong, as small
"shopkeeper's mentality." He was comparing international Shanghai
to a very British Hong Kong. However, at least the racial chasm in
business was narrowing, for the Chinese were not excluded from any
commercial activities. Father realized that Hong Kong was a place to
do business, but, as someone who believed in the brotherhood of
men, it was not a society he would choose to live in.
Father Meets Mother
As a sociable young man, Father was always seen with a group of
friends. One day that summer, not long after he returned from Eng-
land, he was with his friends on a beach when two girls dropped by
on their way home from a tennis game. As one of them caught his
eye, he asked a girl he knew, Julia Wong, to introduce him. Julia said,
"Don't bother with her, she's just my younger sister!" Father persist-
ed, and thereby met Esther, my mother. They ended up spending the
rest of the afternoon together.
Mother was only seventeen, a student at the Diocesan Girls'
School, when she met Father. It was a whirlwind courtship and they
fell in love. But Mother was not ready to get married; she wanted to
finish school first. Father's parents were delighted that their son had
18 Building Bridges
found someone so suitable. When Father proposed, they went to see
Mother's parents to ask for consent, but Mother stated she was just
not ready. Grandfather then came up with a brilliant idea: he would
send Mother to study at Oxford, where Father was to finish his prac-
tical training. Mother could study Portuguese to help in the Lee
family business. Grandfather also promised to take her parents on a
trip around the world to visit the young couple the following year.
That did it, and Mother agreed to get married.
All this happened so quickly that my parents didn't really have
time to get to know each other well. Theirs was a relationship that
grew with the years together, establishing mutual trust, understand-
ing and respect that lasted throughout their lives.
The Wongs, Mother's family, were modern and progressive. Grand-
father Wong, one of the elite in the Chinese society in Hong Kong, was
good friends with Hong Kong notables Sir Robert Hotung and Sir
Shou Son Chau. The Wongs lived a luxurious life on Prince Edward
Road. When Mother and her siblings were growing up, they not only
had a large household staff and gardeners, but also four cars so that
the growing children could drive themselves around.
Mother always prided herself that her father was the first person in
Hong Kong to own a motor car when cars were first imported into the
Colony in 1912, despite the fact that the Chinese community
described cars as "coughing, spluttering, honking demons." Mother's
parents, Joseph and Jeannie, had eleven children of whom eight were
girls. Mother was the number-five daughter. Mother and her siblings
lived a free and easy life, driving everywhere, swimming, playing ten-
nis and dancing. Mother used to get caught by the police for speeding,
probably on her way to buy sweets, of which chocolates were her
favourite. Mother also took flying lessons but never got her licence.
Mother was fond and proud of her family. Her grandfather, Great-
grandfather Wong, had gone to the West Indies as a young man to
work as a labourer. He returned to China with a sizable fortune when
he was in his early thirties and moved to Hong Kong to work as a
court interpreter because of his knowledge of English. He chose a wife
from a convent school run by German nuns, a girl whose father and
brother were both ministers of the church. She spoke not only English
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 19
and Chinese, but also German, and she wore only European clothes.
That was unusual for a Chinese girl at that time. The two did not
know each other well when they got married. Great-grandmother
Wong later told her grandchildren she wondered on her wedding day
why her wealthy husband had such rough hands.
As a court interpreter, Great-grandfather Wong was well paid. The
Wongs lived on a large estate near Boundary Street in Kowloon. (丁 he
land was subsequently repossessed by the Hong Kong government, and
they were relocated to present-day Prince Edward Road.)
Mother and her siblings were full of stories of the fun they had as
children when they visited their grandparents. The person who was
held in highest esteem by the grandchildren was the matriarch of the
Wong clan, Great-grandmother Wong. She loved having them around
and used to teach them to sing German songs. She was religious and
encouraged the grandchildren to sing hymns to her by rewarding them
each time. She spent her time doing charitable work, which continued
after she was confined to a wheelchair. Her grandchildren were
impressed by the fact that she chose a concubine for her husband
when she was tired of bearing children. But the real reason for finding
a concubine was to have someone willing to stay in the village in
China to look after her in-laws, since Great-grandfather was the only
son, and Great-grandmother certainly didn't want the job. There were
a total of sixteen children, of which eleven were her own.
In his home village Great-grandfather Wong was regarded as the
son who made good. When he returned to Dong Guan (Guangdong
province) from abroad, he built a house with gun towers for the fam-
ily in his ancestral village, Ho Pak Kiu. The Wongs were Hakka,
(guests), who were later settlers on the land, and therefore got poorer
land than the Punti (locals). They had to fight with their neighbours
to protect the water supply needed for their fields.
The Wongs owned rice fields, leichee orchards and a peanut oil facto-
ry. Whenever Great-grandfather Wong or any of his sons returned from
Hong Kong to check on the business, they were met at the train station
by an armed brigade for protection.' Due to the deterioration of law and
order in China, rural militarization became the norm, and armed guards
were standard for the landlords, especially absentee landlords.
20 Building Bridges
Traditionally, the Pimti and the Hakka did not inter-marry. Father,
being a Punti, used to tease Mother that Hakka women had big feet,
considered ugly to the traditional Chinese. The fact was that Hakka
women never bound their feet because they did a large share of the
work in the fields, and besides, they were needed to help in the fight-
ing and had to be able to run fast.
It was Great-grandfather Wong's wish that his descendants would
one day return to the ancestral village, so at the entrance of the house
he placed a large picture entitled "Hundred birds returning to the
nest." However, only the eighth son, who was the first-born of the
concubine, actually lived and remained in the village, looking after
the rice fields and the business. The rest of the children chose to live
in Hong Kong, and with the political unrest that existed over the
years in China, it was at times impossible for them to return even for
a visit. The only time a number of them went back was during the
Second World War, after the surrender of Hong Kong. Food was
scarce in Hong Kong, and there was always enough to eat in the vil-
lage because of the rice fields that the family owned.
Great-grandfather Wong was well known and respected in Hong
Kong. When he died, many people came to pay their respects by kow-
towing all the way in from the entrance to the altar of their red house
on Prince Edward Road. He had a grand funeral, with four white
horses drawing the carriage that carried his coffin. The family was
sent so many flowers that the colony's shops were said to have run
out of flowers. 2
Mother's father, Joseph, was the second son. He was a prosperous
and well-respected member of Hong Kong society, a chartered accoun-
tant and the first president of the Chinese Association of Chartered
Accountants. During the First World War, he was in the police reserve
in Hong Kong, when many of the British went to fight in Europe, and
the gap had to be filled. His daughters Josephine and Jennie remem-
ber him looking very handsome in his white uniform.
Whenever there was a shortage of personnel, Grandfather Wong
would fill in as interpreter in the law courts. He became a Justice of
the Peace in 1923, and subsequently was decorated by both King
George VI and Dr. Sun Yatsen. After his first wife died childless, he
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 21
married Jeannie Maxwell, my grandmother, Jeannie's nickname was
Beauty, because she was a beautiful Eurasian girl. Great-grandmoth-
er Wong encouraged her sons to marry Eurasians because she wanted
beautiful grandchildren, and she had many.
Grandmother Jeannie Maxwell Wong was one of four children and
the only daughter of John Maxwell and a Chinese lady whose name
we don't know, because she was always referred to as Grandmother
by Mother and her siblings. John Maxwell went to Hong Kong from
Scotland in the nineteenth century, stayed on to work and to get mar-
ried. He chose a Chinese girl from an orphanage which was the
precursor of the Po Leung Kuk, an institution established in 1878 by
a group of wealthy and influential Chinese gentlemen to protect des-
titute women and children. That was really his only option, since
there were very few European women of marriageable age of his own
class, and no Chinese girl from a good family would consider him eli-
gible. Great-grandfather Maxwell worked as a policeman in Hong
Kong, and by all accounts, he was a fine father to his children.
In those days, Eurasians did not belong to either the Chinese or the
European communities, so they had to try very hard to be one or the
other. Grandmother Jeannie Maxwell Wong became more Chinese
than the Chinese. She could understand and speak English, but she
could read only Chinese. She was the authority on Chinese customs,
and everyone in the Wong family always consulted her. I remember
her in her later years looking very serene in a Chinese cheongsam,
wearing her hair in a bun.
The Wedding
My parents' wedding took place on February 28, 1928, at St.
John's Cathedral. Mother always said that she wished the fashion for
wedding dresses that year had been long gowns instead of short, but,
having to be fashionable, she had a short wedding dress of silver lace
trimmed with pearls, and she carried white roses. Mother was a beau-
tiful girl, tall for a Chinese and rather big-boned. She had to wear
low-heeled shoes so that she would not look taller than Father. In
fact, she kept growing after they were married and became quite a bit
22 Building Bridges
taller than Father. She was as fair-skinned as Father was dark, with
brown hair covered by her wedding head-piece that came down to
her eyebrows, according to the fashion of the day. She had a large
wedding party, with her sisters and cousins in dresses of different pas-
tel colours and decorated with rosettes. They were beautiful young
women and girls, and all Great-grandmother Wong's grandchildren.
The Cathedral was filled to the brim with Chinese and European
guests, and many people had to stand outside because they couldn't
get in. The wedding was performed by the Very Rev. A. Swann, Dean
of Hong Kong, who broke tradition by officiating at a Chinese wed-
ding for the first time. Hong Kong society was so divided between the
Chinese and the Europeans that it was only on occasions like these
that the two groups were brought together.
The reception was held at The Lee Gardens where a huge matshed
(a structure of bamboo and straw) was erected, because the taipans'
houses were not large enough to accommodate the two thousand
guests. Hong Kong Hotel, which was one of Father's favourite hotels,
catered the affair. A dais was erected to support a six-tier wedding
cake. Sir Robert Hotung toasted my parents and speeches were made
by Sir Robert, Dr. Robert H. Kotewall and Father.
After the wedding, my parents went on their honeymoon by boat to
Europe. They sailed through the Suez Canal and did what most tourists
do in Egypt, riding camels and visiting the Sphinx. Their first stop in
Europe was Switzerland, where Mother met Third Uncle for the first
time. He was attending school there. Subsequently, they went to Eng-
land, where Mother met Father's sisters Doris and Ansie (Second and
Third Aunts), who were in a boarding school for girls.
Grandfather's Murder
During Father's visit to Hong Kong, Grandfather got embroiled in
what became a court case over the Yue Sing firm's opium licence with
the government of Macao. The Yue Sing firm had had the opium
monopoly since 1924. A third of the company was owned by the Lee
family, and Grandfather was the general manager. In March 1927, the
Portuguese government announced in the Boletim Oficial that the
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 23
monopoly system under which opium had been imported, prepared,
sold and distributed would come to an end; therefore its contract
with the Yue Sing firm would be terminated, to be replaced by a gov-
ernment monopoly under the superintendence of the Inspector of
Consumption Taxes. It established an Opium Administration and
Pedro Jose Lobo was appointed as Administrator. By 1927, a quarter
of the original investment of $3 million had been returned to the sub-
scribers of Yue Sing, but the winding-up proceedings in the courts in
Macao would mean that the rest of the investment would be lost.
This was something the subscribers to the firm had to accept.
Then Grandfather discovered that the Macao government had not
taken back the licence, but had given it to another company, the Yau
Sing Company, for a payment of $120,000. The company opened an
account at a branch of the Mercantile Bank of India in Hong Kong,
and the comprador of the bank confirmed that the opium monopoly
had been obtained by the Yau Sing Company by tender from the gov-
ernment of Macao. The Company was opened for subscription. A
friend of Grandfather's was approached to buy shares, and he came
to Grandfather for advice.
Grandfather believed that since the contract with Yue Sing had
been terminated by the Macao government, no other firm should
legally be given a new contract by the same government. He sent a
petition to the governor of Macao, requesting fair treatment for his
firm and for an enquiry into the matter, as well as the return, in due
course, of the original deposit by Yue Sing to the Portuguese govern-
ment. The petition was also sent to the Legislative Councillors,
sixteen lawyers and the Consul-General of Macao. In his petition, the
name of Pedro Jose Lobo was implicated.
In the spring of 1928, during the preparation of my parents' wed-
ding, Pedro Jose Lobo sued Grandfather for libel and asked the Hong
Kong court for an injunction to prevent him from sending further
petitions to the governor of Macao. During the period leading up to
the trial, Grandfather received letters threatening his life, saying also
that bombs would be thrown at my parents' wedding. These letters
were ignored by Grandfather even though friends and relatives
advised him to be careful and change his routine. 丁 he wedding went
24 Building Bridges
smoothly, my parents left for Europe, and the threats were forgotten.
On April 17, Chief Justice Gollan of the Supreme Court in Hong
Kong gave judgment in Grandfather's favour. And Grandfather
believed that it was all over.
On April 30, at one o'clock in the afternoon, as Grandfather was
entering the Chinese Yue Kee Club on Wellington Street for tiffin,
which was his routine, he was shot in the corridor. He called out a
couple of times, " gau mefig," meaning save my life, and members at
the Club heard the shots and his cries. When a foki (waiter), Law Lau,
reached the corridor, he saw Grandfather injured, holding on to the
wall, and looking very pale. Instead of stopping to help, he followed
a man in white trousers and a short jacket who darted through the
passage from the Club. By the time the members of the club reached
Grandfather, he was already dead. He was forty-seven years old.
The family offered a reward of $10,000 for information leading to
the arrest of the assassin, but despite the police having many leads and
some arrests, the murderer was never caught. The entire family was in
shock. Grandfather left behind a wife, three concubines, seven sons
and six surviving daughters, with daughter number-eight on the way.
My parents and three of Father's siblings were in England when the
news reached them. They immediately began their return journey, but
travel by boat through the Suez Canal was so slow, they missed the Bud-
dhist funeral service. On May 25, Grandfather was buried in a beautiful
site overlooking the ocean in the Permanent Cemetery in Aberdeen.
Later, at Lady Clara Hotung s suggestion, a matshed was specially
built in The Lee Gardens. Buddhist services were held for seven days
to pacify Grandfather's ghost and to raise his soul from suffering in
the next world.'
Father as Head of the Family
At the age of twenty-three, Father became the head of the family.
Mother, at eighteen, was no longer a student, but his partner. Since
Grandmother was illiterate, it was up to Father to make sure the huge
family was taken care of. In order to raise money for death duties, he
arranged for the sale of many of Grandfather's shares. Father suffered
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 25
insulting experiences, which he never forgot, when some of Grandfa-
ther's "friends" refused to open the door when he called on them. One
of the exceptions was Arthur Morse, chief accountant of the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Bank, to whom he went to borrow money. It was
very intimidating for Father, but the kindness and consideration shown
to him by Morse made them fast friends for the rest of their lives.
Grandfather had mortgages on many of his properties, the largest
of which was East Point Hill (now The Lee Gardens), which was held
by Jardine. This meant that if we reneged on the payment, the prop-
erty would be repossessed. Father borrowed money from the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Bank to pay off the mortgage.
Many people approached Grandmother to buy our properties, but
with Father's encouragement, she refused to part with any of it. From
then on, and for many years, the entire family lived on a tight budget
in order to pay off the mortgages on our extensive holdings from the
rents collected.
When Grandfather's estate duties were settled, Father remained in
Hong Kong, working for the Lee & Orange Architectural firm to
complete his practical training. One of his projects was the length-
ening of the No. 1 Dock of the Whampoa Dockyard in Kowloon/
Today, in the same location, is a shopping centre in the shape of an
ocean liner.
My parents lived in the Big House with Grandmother and the rest
of the family. With all the mortgage and loan payments, there was
very little money to go around, and Grandmother held the purse
strings. While Father was completing his training, he had no income.
Mother, at the age of eighteen, found herself trapped in an old-fash-
ioned, traditional household which was totally different from her
own, and because Father was not earning an independent income, she
had no psychological or financial freedom. She began to lose weight
and became depressed, so her mother decided to take her to Lushan
for a complete change of scenery.
Lushan, in Jiangxi province in the county of Jiujiang, not far from
Poyang Lake, is famous for the beauty of its scenery and the wonderful
mountain air. It was well known as a spot for patients to recuperate
from their illnesses. It used to be (and still is) a retreat for the wealthy,
26 Building Bridges
and spotted along the mountainside were many villas owned by West-
erners and wealthy Chinese. Later on, both Chiang Kaishek and Mao
Zedong had villas there. Mother called it the Switzerland of China.
At that time, the only way to reach the town at the top of Lushan
was by walking or being carried in a sedan chair. Mother told me
that she was so thin when they arrived that the chair-coolies fought
to carry her up the mountain. However, by the time she came back
down, she had gained so much weight, no chair-coolie wanted to
carry her. Mother never said how long she stayed, but she slept and
ate well until Father went to bring her home.
Work in Guangzhou
When Father finished his practical training with Lee &C Orange in
1931 and became a qualified engineer, he wanted to pursue his pro-
fessional career. The various businesses of the Lee family were looked
after by employees, and Father felt that it was not necessary for him
to remain in Hong Kong as long as he was close by.
丁 he 1930s were the years when the Chinese Republic needed a
great deal of help to build a new country. Like many young Chinese
at the time, Father was filled with hope for the future, and he want-
ed to do his part for China,
Being Cantonese, he went to Guangzhou, also known as Canton,
to work in the government of Mayor Liu Jiwan. He occupied differ-
ent posts over a number of years. He was Chief Secretary for the city,
Chief Engineer, a member of the Department of Water Works, and
also an auditor in the Ministry of Audit.
At the beginning, Mother remained living on the third floor of the
Big House in Hong Kong while Father worked in Guangzhou. The
children in the Lee family were Sixth Uncle, Seventh Uncle, Seventh
Aunt, Eighth Aunt and cousin Hon Chiu, son of Second Uncle and
the eldest grandson. Hon Chiu remembers that they were always
hungry, not only because the family was cash poor, but also because
Grandmother was very frugal. They used to visit Mother on Sundays
at teatime and she would bake a cake as a treat for them. By that
From Marriage In Hong Kon (； To Work In China 27
time, Father had an independent income, and Mother was no longer
cash-strapped. Those were memorable times for the children. Moth-
er was the modern and fashionable sister-in-law, and was looked up
to by all of Father's siblings. The younger girls who did not have the
opportunity to go to England before Grandfather died wanted to
have English names, and Mother named them Dione, Joyce and Amy.
When Father was more settled in his post in the Guangzhou gov-
ernment, Mother moved there. They lived in Dongshan, which was a
pleasant residential area in the suburb of Guangzhou. They had by
then become good friends with Mayor Liu Jiwan and his family. They
socialized a great deal with government officials, and Mother was
expected to keep company with their wives. One day, a group of
ladies went to a fortune-teller, who told the officials' wives that their
futures were not rosy, but that Mother's was very good. Mother
found that embarrassing, being the wife of the most junior person in
the hierarchy of the Guangzhou government. The other ladies were
very displeased. Of course, at that time, no one foresaw the change
of government in China from Nationalist to Communist, when all the
government officials became refugees.
My parents commuted to Hong Kong every weekend by train,
back to the Big House to see Grandmother and the family. By that
time, as the Lee family expanded, many members had moved into the
Lee Building, up the hill from the Big House. My parents stayed in
the Big House during their weekend visits.
Since Grandmother was the only person in the family with a motor
car, in order for the children to go swimming at South Bay, where the
family owned a cabin, all the children would go to the Big House
after half-day school on Saturdays to have lunch, and wait to see who
would take them swimming. It was usually Father or Third Uncle
(who had returned from Oxford by then) or Second Aunt. It was a
much anticipated outing for the youngsters who enjoyed their after-
noon picnic of tea sandwiches at the cabin, and a swim. Cousin Hon
Chiu was just learning to swim then, so he mainly played on the
beach. After their swim, Father always treated all of them to ice
cream sold by a vendor for Dairy Farm. 、
28 Building Bridges
During the years when my parents commuted between Hong Kong
and Guangzhou, they had friends who also made the same return trip
each week, so the group usually played bridge during the journey.
During this period, Father worked closely with Yuen Menghong,
Director of Public Works in Guangzhou. Yuen's cousin Yuen Yao-
hong used to tease Father that, as a foreign graduate, he would know
only theory, and not anything about the practical side of building.
Yuen Yaohong himself first started work in construction as a carpen-
ter. However, the two men became good friends, and he became
Uncle Yuen to us.
In the mid 1930s, Yuen Yaohong moved to Hong Kong and start-
ed to work for the Lee family as the general manager of International
Entertainment Enterprises Ltd., the company which leased the Lee
Theatre. This company was formed because one of Grandfather's
brothers was in the habit of taking money from the till in the theatre,
and no employee dared to challenge him. Since he was an elder,
Father and his brothers were not in a position to stop him, even
though the theatre belonged to them. The employees could then tell
Grandfather's brother that the Lee Theatre was leased by another
company, which meant he could no longer help himself to the till.
From then on, if he needed money, he had to go Lee Hysan Estate Co.
or to Lee Tung, the rental office.
When my parents' lives became more settled in Guangzhou, they
bought a piece of land in Conghua, where there were natural hot
springs. They built a small house on a beautiful hillside. The rest of
the land was planted as orchards with many different fruit trees. The
house, designed by Father, was built in the typical Chinese style with
red walls and a green tiled roof which housed a tank fed by hot spring
water. The kitchen was open to the outside. Aside from my parents'
bedroom, there were no separate rooms. It was an open concept
where all the guests slept on tatamis on the floor.
My parents spent many happy hours there with their siblings,
friends and relatives. They often went swimming in a small lake which
had a waterfall at one end. One day Mother's sister Jenny swam a lit-
tle too close to the fall and almost drowned. The water in Conghua is
well known for its medicinal qualities, and Mother's sister Sarah often
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 29
brought her son Jay, who was having skin problems, to bathe in the
hot springs.'
The house in Conghua turned out to be such a wonderful country
retreat that Mayor Liu Jiwan and many of the officials of Guangdong
went there too. Later, the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party
also built their villas there. The area became a favourite resort for the
well-to-do.
After the Second World War, because of political unrest in China,
my parents had no plans to use it any more, so they asked the care-
taker, who had been looking after the house and grounds, to move
into the house. I met the caretaker when he came to Hong Kong at
the end of the 1940s to report the condition of the property to Father,
and Father asked him in particular how the fruit trees were doing.
I didn't see this house myself until the late 1980s, when my hus-
band, Neville, and I went to Conghua with Mother and her friend
Daisy Li. The garden was completely overgrown with weeds, and it
was difficult to distinguish the trees. The house was altered and in a
terrible state of disrepair. Mother was so disappointed to see it paint-
ed white instead of the original red and green. A nondescript house
had been built close to it, and a public dining hall was located in the
area which used to be set aside for parking their cars. It saddened
Mother to see the property in that condition.
Pioneers in Hainan
In 1934 Father left his employment with the Guangzhou govern-
ment to do something very different in Hainan Island. Situated
between the South China Sea and the Gulf of Tonkin, it is about the
same size as the island of Taiwan. Except for the Paracel Islands,
which had troops stationed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam, Hainan
Island is the most southern territory of China.
Why did an Oxford graduate take his young wife to a backward
place like Hainan Island? I never thought to ask Father, but I guess he
had a sense of curiosity and of adventure. After all, he was an inquis-
itive person all his life. But I think the main reason was his desire to
help China, by working in a remote and backward place. He believed
30 Building Bridges
that one person could make a difference even in a country with a pop-
ulation of hundreds of millions.
Hainan Island was just beginning to attract the attention of the
Chinese government in the 1930s. Minister TV. Soong visited the
island and expressed the opinion that it should be developed. Indus-
trialists and educators began to realize the economic importance of
the area known as the "larder of China," where rice crops can be har-
vested up to three times a year. It was also known as "the paradise of
China" because flowers bloom year round and delicious fruits and
magnificent trees grow everywhere. Ancient Indian writers referred to
Hainan as "The Island of Palms" because at least six types of palm
grow luxuriantly on the island, producing considerable income. On
this tropical island, the sun is so intense during the day that people
cannot go out without hats or umbrellas. The humidity is usually
high. In summer, the temperature goes up to as high as 98°F, and in
winter, drops to 45"F. However, along the mountain range, Limu
Ling, that runs through the middle of the island, the temperature is
always cool.
Hainan became known to the Chinese at the time of the first
emperor, Qin Shihuangdi (245-210 B.C.). The island, inhabited by
aborigines known as the Li tribe, attracted about 23,000 Chinese
colonists from the mainland during the Early Han Dynasty (206
B.C.-A.D. 24.) By the end of the Later Han Dynasty (A.D.25-219),
the entire island was subjugated and the Li tribes were pushed into
the centre of the island. 丁 he name Hainan, meaning "south of the
sea," came from the Yuan Dynasty.
In 1921, the island officially became part of Guangdong province.
By the late 1920s, there were already more than two million Chinese
living on the island. Chinese settlements were founded along the
northern part of the island, where close contact could be maintained
with the mainland. Haikou, the major city, was located at the north-
ern tip of the island and was not only the home of the governor but
also the headquarters of the Garrison Commander/
Hainan Island was known as Qiongya province to the Chinese
government. In the 1920s, the Chinese government started to build
highways in order to open up the island for development. Besides
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 31
shops, restaurants, hotels and banks that catered to the population,
there were some Chinese investments, mainly in rubber and sugar
cane plantations. Some of these companies were later abandoned
because of problems with bandits in the area. - In the 1930s, it was
divided into thirteen counties, two of which were exclusively inhab-
ited by Chinese. The Li tribe and the Chinese lived in separate
communities even if they were geographically in the same areas.^
丁 he Li aborigines physically and culturally resemble the Tai people
who lived in Thailand, Burma, Yunnan province in China and Indo-
China. They are stout, of medium stature, with yellowish-brown skin,
straight black hair and dark brown eyes. Their facial features are quite
different from those of the Chinese. (For centuries, Chinese scholars
referred to them as the tattooed race of the south who knew no civi-
lization.) The women are tattooed (in a practice known as tantan),
apparently to make it easier to identify their own descendants. They
have their own native costumes, but in the summer, the adult males
usually wear only loin cloths and turbans. In the 1930s, they lived on
hunting and farming.
Since Father wanted to help open up a primitive part of China for
agriculture and trade, he and Mother moved to Hainan to work as
pioneers in ranching, with the idea of selling cattle to Europe. The
weather and the topography in parts of Hainan are known to be good
for cattle farming."' He bought land "as far as the eye can see,"
according to the description in his land deed, and imported the best
cattle from Europe for breeding.
Being adventurous, Father crossed the island through the Limu
Ling mountains to the area known as the Li Country, where the abo-
rigines lived. He was warned by the local Chinese not to go into the
interior because of the danger of malaria and other diseases; nine out
of ten people who went in, did not come out alive. Father had faith
in modern science, and believed that as long as he had quinine and
other medicines with him, he would be all right. And he was.
While in Hainan, Father also became a plantation owner, growing
flax and sugar cane. In 1936, Father, together with other investors,
bought Bao Cheng Company. Bao Cheng, which had been established
in 1928 by two partners, owned 5,000 acres where flax was grown
32 Building Bridges
as a cash crop. The cost to produce a ton of processed flax was seven
pounds sterling, but it could fetch thirty pounds in the London mar-
ket. It was a profitable business, but again, due to bandits in the area,
the company closed between 1930-1931."
After Father's group bought the company, he renamed it Lee Hing
Plantation Company, and later changed the name to Lee Hing Agri-
cultural Company Ltd. The company was situated on the north coast
of Hainan near Ling Gao county (west of Haikou). The size of the
farm was increased to 15,000 acres, growing flax and sugar cane. By
January 1937, more land was purchased, and the size was increased
to 20,000 acres. The company was well established with its own flax-
processing machines and storage buildings, forty-five horse-power
generators, gasoline storage, a garage for cars, an office building and
residences for workers.
My parents brought Second Uncle with them, as well as a young
man named Leung Kwong Wing, who continued to be in the employ
of the Lee family, eventually becoming one of our gardeners in the Big
House. Men from the Li tribe were hired to clear the land and look
after the cattle.
In the mountain streams in Limu Ling were gold nuggets, which
the Li collected for use as jewellery, or for barter with outsiders.
Father told me that he bartered with them using glass beads, mirrors
and soap. They were fascinated by seeing themselves in the mirrors.
They loved making soap suds in the river. Glass beads were a lot more
colourful than gold nuggets.
Father had firearms for hunting, and perhaps also for protection
against bandits, but issued strict instructions that guns were not to be
given to or even handled by the Li aborigines. One day, he was beside
himself when he found out that Second Uncle had used some of the
guns for bartering with the aborigines.
Father used to say that because Hainan Island was so far out of the
way one could always come across something unusual on the island
and in its waters. One day, while my parents were at the coast, a fish-
ing boat came back to shore dragging a garouper ten feet long. There
was great astonishment because no one had ever seen a garouper that
large before. The entire village, my parents and their entourage
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 33
included, celebrated with a meal from that one fish. We were very
impressed by this story.
Father often went hunting for wild boars. It was a dangerous sport
because the boars, if wounded, would charge at the hunter. Some-
times Mother would go along, riding a small horse. She was not a
good rider, and was frightened whenever the horse jumped at the
sound of gunfire. However, riding was necessary because it was the
only way to travel in the interior.
My parents lived the lives of pioneers, hunting and growing their
own food. Since there was no electricity, Father built his own gener-
ators with wind power." My parents made friends there, mostly with
other pioneers and missionaries, and with some of the local village
headmen. They would sometimes go into town and stay in small
hotels and meet their friends, and at times they took visitors to vari-
ous parts of the island. They both loved living there. Tanned by the
strong tropical sun, Father became almost as dark as the Li people.
He often talked about Hainan Island with nostalgia, because it was a
part of his life that he treasured but something that could never be
repeated. The best souvenirs he had from Hainan were mango forks
and knives which he had designed and crafted there, and which I still
use and treasure.
But important events were happening elsewhere. On July 7, 1937,
Japanese and Chinese troops collided at the Marco Polo bridge in the
Lugouqiao region near Beijing. It was the beginning of the undeclared
Sino-Japanese war. Father felt it was time for him to go back to main-
land China to help. Mother told me, "Even if China had not been at
war, when the war broke out in Europe in 1939, it would not have
been possible to ship cattle or agricultural products there anyway."
Return to Hong Kong
At the end of 1937, my parents moved back to Hong Kong and
Father again commuted to China, this time to help the Nationalist
government. Mother began to feel unwell, and a visit to the doctor
confirmed that she was pregnant. In February 1938, ten years after
their wedding, my eldest brother, Richard, was born.
34 Building Bridges
Father thought the return to Hong Kong was just an interruption
from his life in Hainan. He had left the plantations in the care of oth-
ers, not realizing that future events would prevent him from going
back, and that eventually all the land would be repossessed by the
Chinese government. Although Mother told me that the land deed
was kept in her safe deposit box, we couldn't find it after she passed
away.
During the 1930s, the Central Chinese government under Chiang
Kaishek enjoyed the support of many well-educated, highly qualified
persons with high ideals about building a new and progressive
China." With the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931, and the
subsequent Marco Polo bridge incident in 1937, China's problems
became urgent. In Hong Kong, a group of brilliant engineers gathered
to discuss the rebuilding of China after the war and in 1938, the Chi-
nese Institute of Engineers, Hong Kong Chapter, was established. The
membership was restricted to qualified engineers who had more than
seven years of practical experience. The first president was Huang
Boqiao'5 who was Director of the Jinghu Railroad Bureau, and Father
was the vice-president. As a young man, Ching Tong (C.T.) Wu was
hired as secretary for the Institute, and that was how he and Father
first met. He became a lifelong friend and confidant, and an impor-
tant source for this book.
In 1938, Japan invaded south China, and in October, Guangzhou
was occupied by the Japanese. Father commuted between mainland
China and Hong Kong frequently during the years before the fall of
Hong Kong. He was involved not only as an engineer, but also in
many other aspects in the war effort against the Japanese. He was an
advisor and the purchasing manager for the China Tea Company,
which was one of the most important branches under the Finance
Ministry of the Chinese Central government. A large proportion of
the country's foreign exchange income came from the sale of tea.「 In
later years, Mother explained to me the importance of selling Chinese
tea for foreign exchange in order to buy equipment for the defence of
China against the Japanese invasion. The head office of the China Tea
Company was in Chongqing, and Father frequently commuted there
from Hong Kong.
From Marriage In Hong Kong To Work In China 35
Father was also asked by the Chinese government to look after the
distribution of sea salt."* In certain parts of the interior of China, the
local population lacked iodine in their diet and goitre was prevalent.
It was, therefore, important to make sea salt available to them. I
remember the adults talking about this problem during the war, and
in the interior of China we saw people suffering from goitre.
In October 1939, Mother gave birth to my older sister, Deanna.
Father's enthusiasm and reputation got him elected in 1940 as
president of the Institute of Chinese Engineers, Hong Kong Chapter.
His connections in Hong Kong made it possible for him to arrange
visits for the engineers to various companies and factories, because he
was trusted not to allow any stealing of trade secrets. An example
was the Tian Chu Weijing factory (The Heavenly Kitchen Mono-
sodium Glutamate Factory), owned by Wu Yunchu. At that time,
monosodium glutamate was mostly manufactured in Japan, Under
normal circumstances, Wu would never allow visitors to his factory,
but Father was able to organize a tour for the engineers." Dinners for
the Institute were always held at the Big House. C.T. Wu said he was
at times mistaken for one of the members because he was dressed in
a suit and following Father around.
As the secretary of the Chinese Institute of Engineers, C.T. Wu made
thirty dollars a month. Father took a liking to him and promised to
find him a higher paying job. At the beginning of 1941, Father called
up his friend Zhu Baiying, who was head of the research department
of the China Tea Company, to recommend that he hire C.T. Wu. Even
as a clerk, Wu's salary tripled. Wu's mother declared that he could get
married since he was making so much money?
3
Storm Clouds Gather:
Hong Kong Falls To
The Japanese
The Japanese invasion of China began in 1937, and between
1937 and 1941 the population of Hong Kong increased from
700,000 to 1.5 million as refugees flooded in. Horrible tales of mas-
sacre, rape and starvation circulated in the colony, but Britain was
powerless against Japanese military might. Since it could not count
on the help of the Americans, it tried to placate the Japanese govern-
ment in the hope of avoiding war. 丁 he more virulent anti-Japanese
literature in Hong Kong was censored by the colonial government/
The British government misjudged the importance of Hong Kong to
Japan as a centre for the movement of troops and war materials, and
British military intelligence was unaware of troop preparations across
the Chinese border and of Japanese spies who infiltrated Hong Kong.
Under the command of Major-General Takeo Ito, Japanese Intelli-
gence officers worked in Hong Kong as bartenders, barbers, masseurs
and waiters in establishments frequented by the British military, offer-
ing cold beers, exotic food, accommodating women, generous credit
facilities, and listening to their conversations. In fact, the best men's
hairdresser in Hong Kong, who over a seven-year period cut the hair
36
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 37
of two successive governors, generals, the Commissioner of Police,
the officer in charge of Special Branch and the chairman of the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Bank, presented himself to his employer after the
capitulation of Hong Kong on Christmas Day 1941, in the uniform
of a Commander of the Imperial Japanese Navy,
After the fall of Guangzhou in October 1938, the Japanese
amassed troops north of the Hong Kong border. The 38th Army was
training daily at Baiyunshan in Guangzhou, which had the same
topography as the area at Gin Drinker's Line, in the southern part of
the New Territories. Nightly, they prepared for a border attack on
Hong Kong from Shenzhen."
Defence of Hong Kong
In 1939, while the Second World War was raging in Europe, the War
Office in London was well aware of the military deficiencies in Hong
Kong, but the Colony was regarded as expendable and in fact, militar-
ily indefensible. When Lord Hastings Ismay, Prime Minister Winston
Churchill's Chief of Staff, proposed at the War Office conference to
demilitarize Hong Kong, he was accused of being a defeatist. Sir Geof-
frey Northcote, Governor of Hong Kong, believed that Lord Ismay was
a realist and wrote to Whitehall in October 1940 to urge the with-
drawal of the British garrison "in order to avoid the slaughter of
civilians and the destruction of property that would follow a Japanese
attack. "4 No one listened. Besides, Northcote was about to retire due to
ill health, and would be replaced by Sir Mark Young.
Both Whitehall and many Hong Kong residents wanted to believe
Major- General Edward Grasett, the Toronto-born commander of the
British troops in Hong Kong, who did not believe that the Japanese
would declare war on the British or the Americans. However, he still
felt that the garrison in Hong Kong should be reinforced, but his
request was denied by the War Office. In 1941, Air Chief Marshall
Sir Robert Brooke- Popham, Commander-in-Chief of the Far East,
believing that Hong Kong could endure a siege of six months or
38 Building Bridges
more, requested an increase in the garrison. He too was denied
because Churchill believed that there was not the slightest chance of
holding Hong Kong.
In the meantime, Major- General Grasett continued to campaign
for reinforcements even after he knew of Churchill's decision. When
he retired from the Hong Kong command in July 1941, he stopped
off in Ottawa en route to England, where he met with Canada's Chief
of General Staff, H.D.G. (Harry) Crerar, his old schoolmate. They
discussed how long Hong Kong could withstand an extended siege if
it had an addition of one or two battalions. He did not suggest to
Crerar that Canada should supply the manpower, but he did make
that proposal to the British Chiefs of Staff.;
So the defence of Hong Kong was dealt with half-heartedly. A sin-
gle RAF squadron was diverted to Malaya, leaving five obsolete
fighters as Hong Kong's air defence. Sea defence depended on the
H.M.S. Prince of Wales and the H.M.S. Repulse, which were sup-
posed to come from the South Seas to relieve Hong Kong when
necessary. It was also assumed that the U.S. Pacific Fleet in Pearl Har-
bor would be able to contain the Japanese in the event of a major
conflict. On land, the defence of the Colony depended entirely on a
garrison of 11,000 regular British and Indian troops, and a citizen
force of 1,387 Hong Kong Volunteers. Batteries were put on the
island of Hong Kong at the entrances to the harbour. Gin Drinker's
Line was to be the first line of defence. Tunnels and bomb shelters
were built all over the city in preparation for an attack.
The population of Hong Kong did have drills in case of a bombing
attack, and students in middle schools were given uniforms and
trained as air raid wardens.' As the news became more alarming,
black-out practices became more frequent. Young civilian men were
asked to join the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps. Among them
was Bill Poy, who was married to Mother's cousin Ethel Lam, and
who later became my father-in-law. However, the reality of war was
not taken too seriously, because, as Poy told me, it was considered
"fun for young men to be with their friends in a motorcycle
squadron." Some actually joined because they would be given motor-
cycles/ Poy owned his own motorcycle at the time and he used to
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 39
take my future husband, Neville, on it to go to school at Ling Ying,
at the top of The Lee Gardens. Poy, an Australian-born Chinese, was
working for the Canadian Trade Commissioner in Hong Kong.
No one wanted to believe that Hong Kong would be attacked,
even with the appearance of many refugees in the Colony. Overnight,
Hong Kong became the cultural capital of the Chinese world because
of the arrival of refugee artists, scholars and writers. The economy
boomed when the population tripled, and a thriving smuggling trade
with inland China, across Japanese-controlled territories, was mak-
ing some people very rich. Manufacturing in the colony flourished.
In May 1941, in the midst of all this, I was born.
In July 1941, all Japanese assets in Hong Kong were frozen, fol-
lowing similar action in Britain and the United States. However,
Britain still did not believe Japan would invade Hong Kong, and
Japanese nationals in the Colony were not kept under close surveil-
lance. When Colonel Suzuki, a Japanese intelligence officer, was
exposed by a British agent, the Foreign Office did not expel him from
Hong Kong because Britain and Japan were not at war. When he
departed of his own accord at the end of November, barely two
weeks before Japan attacked Hong Kong, he had with him the com-
plete details of the British defence plan.
On September 19, 1941, the Dominions Office in London dis-
patched a secret telegram to William Lyon Mackenzie King's
government, asking Canada to provide one or two battalions for the
defence of Hong Kong.- On November 19, the population of Hong
Kong welcomed the arrival of the two Canadian battalions. However,
no one knew that the troops had no battle training, and no knowledge
of the Colony or of local transportation. The information about these
matters had been sent to Australia by mistake.
Life in our family went on as usual. No one was considering leav-
ing the colony since conditions in China were much more serious. It
was at this time that Father met Liao Chengzhi,") Secretary of the
South China Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party Central Com-
mittee, and they became good friends. Liao was engaged in activities
in Guangdong and Hong Kong until the fall of Guangzhou in 1938,
when he escaped to Hong Kong. There he organized forces to send to
40 Building Bridges
Huipo, which became the progenitor of the East River Detachment,
an anti-Japanese guerrilla force in South China and Hong Kong.
Father and Liao tried to negotiate with the British government to pro-
vide ammunition for the Hong Kong-Kowloon Brigade guerrillas to
help to defend the island against the Japanese, but the talks failed
because the British did not want ammunitions to fall into the hands
of the pro-Communist guerrillas."
The two men, along with an English friend, planned the sabotage
of the electric plant in expectation of a Japanese invasion, but the
Japanese attack took everyone by surprise.'-
The one thing the Lee family did in preparation for a Japanese
attack was to stockpile rice in the Big House. Some people in the Wan
Chai district, just below us, knew of our rice reserve and this result-
ed in looting during and after the Japanese invasion.
On the evening of December 6, 1941, Governor Sir Mark Young
attended a charity ball at the Peninsular Hotel. The following day,
Sunday, at midday, the mobilization call went out and a state of emer-
gency was announced over the radio. Many who heard it thought it
was just another preparedness test. Bill Poy reported for duty, but he
told me that many volunteers did not when they realized that there
was real danger of war, Poy and Willy Eu, the son of Eu Tongsan, a
very wealthy gentleman in Hong Kong, reported to Kowloon Rail-
way station because they were attached to the Field Engineers. They
had to mobilize to blow up roads and bridges in the New Territories
in predetermined areas in case of an invasion. That day, Mother's
youngest sister, Jenny, was preparing for her wedding scheduled for
the following day. She and her husband were to sign the register in
the City Hall in Hong Kong, and the wedding and reception were to
take place in Kowloon.
The Battle of Hong Kong
At eight-thirty on Monday morning, December 8, my future hus-
band, Neville, who was in Grade One at the time, was told not to go to
school. He went to the rooftop with one of his family's servants to
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 41
take down the dry laundry, and they saw planes in the sky. Just as
someone said, "It's only another practice," bombs started falling on
the urban area of Kowloon and on Kai Tak airport.
My Aunt Jenny and her husband had just gone to the City Hall to
register. That was the end of the wedding since they could not get
back to Kowloon for the ceremony. Until her husband's death, Aunt
Jenny wondered whether their marriage was legal since there were no
witnesses, and the ceremony never took place.
Grandparents Wong were living in Shouson Hill Road in Aberdeen
at that time, next door to their good friend, Sir Shou Son Chau. The
British military commandeered their house because it was in a strate-
gic position and they were told to leave within four hours. With no
time to pack anything, they came to stay with us.
The bombs on Kai Tak destroyed the five old fighter planes. With-
in a few hours, the people of Hong Kong heard about the destruction
by the Japanese of the U.S. Fleet in Pearl Harbor, of the first bombs
on Manila and Singapore, and of the sinking of the H.M.S. Prince of
Wales and H.M.S. Repulse."
The Big House was hit by shrapnel, and a bomb created a huge
hole on one side of the Lee Building. We were very easy targets
because we were so high up on the hill. Members of the Lee family
gathered their essentials and moved to the backstage area of the Lee
Theatre. We were grateful to Grandfather for building the theatre as
strong as a fortress so that his descendants could use it in times of
war. Along with our Wong Grandparents, we moved into the rooms
behind the backstage area which also had a kitchen. We were crowd-
ed, but safe. We were not able to bring enough rice, so we had to
make do with congee, a type of gruel. The older children were given
crispy rice to ease their hunger between meals. As a seven-month-old
baby, I immediately started getting sick and could not drink the pow-
dered milk my mother brought along. Mother blamed it on the lack
of clean water, because we used well water at the Lee Theatre. From
then on until the end of the war, my health was poor.
During the period of fighting, whenever there was an air-raid sig-
nal, everyone would go to the bomb shelters. The one near the Lee
42 Building Bridges
Theatre was at Leighton Road. During one of the bombing raids,
Grandfather Wong did not enter the shelter fast enough and was hit
on his shoulders by shrapnel.
Once the Japanese took control of Kowloon, artillery was sta-
tioned along the waterfront facing Hong Kong. Mother's younger
sister Josephine's home in Tsim Sha Tsui was commandeered by the
Japanese for that purpose.
At the Queen Mary Hospital, Joseph Tarn was a nurse in training
on his early morning shift that started at 6 o'clock. The moment the
bombs started to drop, all in-patients were discharged to make room
for war casualties. Those who still needed care were transferred to St.
Stephen's Girls' College, which was converted into a relief hospital
with camp beds set up for the patients. Female nurses were sent
home, with the exception of those who wished to stay, and the male
nurses took on most of the responsibility. By afternoon, many injured
soldiers were brought in. Tarn, as a nurse-in-training, had to look
after twenty-four patients, most of whom were Canadians. Some of
the doctors left for China and some were conscripted to stay to help
in Hong Kong, Two of the Chinese doctors Tarn worked with were
Sik Nin Chau and Han Suyin." Many of the Irish doctors stayed,
because Ireland was a neutral country"
丁 he doctors' offices and the nursing school at the Queen Mary
Hospital were converted into dormitories and some government offi-
cials moved in. Among them were Governor Sir Mark Young. Father
T.F. Ryan, leader of the Irish Jesuit priests in Hong Kong, and some
professors of Hong Kong University also stayed in the hospital."
On December 10, 1941, at three o'clock in the morning, there was
a loud banging on the door at villager Chung Poon's house in Wong
Chuk Shan in the New Territories. Thinking that it might be bandits,
he approached the door with a knife in his hand. He opened the door
to find several guns pointing at him. For Chung and the rest of the
population in Sai Kung, in the New Territories, the occupation had
begun. Two days earlier, the Japanese army had overrun Tai Po and
Shatin, and the day before had taken Shingmun Redoubt, which was
part of Gin Drinker's Line. British forces were withdrawing from the
New Territories to the island of Hong Kong, and a contingent of
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 43
Sepoy soldiers were covering the retreat at Devil's Peak. The Japan-
ese soldiers had come over from Shap Sze Heung, intending to find
their way to Kowloon, and had probably strayed into the village of
Wong Chuk Shan by mistake. The soldiers were knocking at every
door to force villagers to act as their porters. On December 11， the
Japanese cavalry passed the Sai Kung Market. There was no distur-
bance or fighting, since the police had been withdrawn before the
Japanese arrived. The villagers just stayed indoors.
The British defensive positions on the New Territories and
Kowloon had been prepared with a view to a delaying action that
would allow consolidation on the island of Hong Kong. However,
within forty-eight hours, the Japanese had broken this defence line,
capturing the Jubilee Redoubt at Shing Mun Dam. (Jubilee Redoubt
on Gin Drinker's Line overlooked the Sing Mun Dam of the Jubilee
Reservoir, just north of the range of hills separating Kowloon from
the New Territories.) The Volunteers retreated to the island of Hong
Kong and reported to Headquarters. The Japanese fired mortars at
the British defences, but there was no bombing. By December 12,
enemy guns were lined up along the Kowloon wharves. At nine
o'clock the next morning, a Japanese staff officer crossed to Victoria
Pier in a launch bearing a flag of truce, and presented to Governor
Mark Young a demand for the surrender of the Colony, under threat
of heavy artillery and bombardment from the air. The Governor
rejected the offer and the blitz began.
During the night of December 18 to 19, the Japanese landed at
three different points on the island 一 North Point, Braemar Point
and Shau Kei Wan ― cutting the island into eastern and western
halves. The Japanese who landed in North Point took over the elec-
trical generating station which was guarded by civilian volunteers, a
group of older men, all of whom were killed" The Japanese troops
crossed the island and there was a great deal of fighting towards
Repulse Bay and Stanley. Bill Poy saw a Canadian general killed in a
bunker in Wong Nai Chung Gap while he was delivering messages
between Headquarters and the troops. On December 21, the gover-
nor was given further instructions from Churchill that "there must be
no thought of surrender."'^
44 Building Bridges
Father was in Chongqing, China, when the Japanese invaded Hong
Kong. He immediately flew back on one of the China Tea Company
planes and had actually reached Hong Kong air space but the plane
could not land. It was diverted to Huizhou. It was fortunate for Father,
for he used to tell us that if he had been there and had been captured
by the Japanese troops, he would have been executed because of his
involvement in the resistance movement.
By Christmas Eve, the British and Canadian troops had retreated to
the Peak because they believed the Japanese had taken over the Gap.
Bill Poy was sent to take a look, but didn't see anyone, so the troops
moved back into the Gap. By then, news had come to the troops that
negotiations were in progress with the Japanese who had occupied
half of the island. They had not yet moved into the city of Victoria.
Under Japanese Occupation
On Christmas Day 1941, at 6:30 in the evening, Governor Sir
Mark Young surrendered to the Japanese. He was removed to the
Peninsular Hotel, and subsequently to Taiwan and then to Mukden
(both under Japanese rule at the time). The survivors of the garrison
and the non-Chinese members of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence
Corps, were sent to POW camps 一 North Point, Shum Shui Po,
Argyle Street and Ma Tao Chung. Many of the POWs were shipped
to labour camps in Japan and other Japanese-occupied territories.
The Chinese Hong Kong Volunteers were given permission to take off
their uniforms and return home. The internment of civilians classified
as enemies at Stanley camp was a slower process, and they remained
there until the end of the war. There were many stories of heroism,
treachery, great suffering and survival during these times.
When Bill Poy heard of the surrender, and before orders were
given, he asked the senior officer what they, the Volunteers, were sup-
posed to do, and he was told to wait for instructions from the
Japanese. Poy said, "I'm not going to wait, I must join my wife and
children." He then turned to Willy Eu and said, "Let's go!" They
went to the Portuguese Volunteers Unit, where they left their
revolvers and their motorcycles. They changed out of their uniforms
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 45
into Chinese clothes which they always carried with them, just in
case, and walked to Eu Yan Sang, a Chinese medicine shop owned by
Willy's father, Eu Tongsan. From there, they phoned Willy's mother
at Euston on Bonham Road, one of the Eu castle-style homes in Hong
Kong. She told them everything was all right, and that the Japanese
had allowed them to stay. That night, Poy and Eu could hear the
Japanese troops moving in and cordoning off the city.
The next day, Poy and Eu decided to go up to Euston, but when
they looked out of the medicine shop they saw a Japanese sentry post-
ed almost outside the door. In order to look as casual as possible, they
went outside, chewing on Chinese dried plums. The next thing Poy
knew, he'd been hit on the head. He didn't know that he had to bow
to all Japanese soldiers. They made their way to Euston bowing all
the way.
The rest of the Poy family was at home in Happy Valley. Neville
was very sad that, because of the lack of food, they had to let Snow
White, their Borzoi (Russian wolfhound), go. It was probably caught
and eaten the moment it was let out of their sight.
For a period, there was total chaos, because the Japanese soldiers,
some of whom were Taiwanese, were given a free hand to rob, rape
and murder. The soldiers went from house to house looking for
"flower maidens," and young women hid wherever they could. They
put mud and ashes on their faces and wore tattered clothes to avoid
being raped. As in all wars, there was tremendous suffering. Some
were luckier than others. The entire population was gripped with fear.
The following day, the cook at Euston returned home late and was
scolded by Willy Eu's mother. He said the Japanese had stopped him
to do some work for them and given him a card with which he could
go anywhere. The next day, Bill Poy borrowed the card which gave
the name and the age of the cook, who happened to be approxi-
mately the same age as himself. He used it to pass all the sentries to
get to Blue Pool Road in Happy Valley where his family was. When
he arrived, he found out that there had been rapes and atrocities in
their apartment building. A few people were killed and Tang Siu Kin
of the Kowloon Bus Company, a well-known person in Hong Kong,
had been stabbed many times by Japanese soldiers. Tang had gone
46 Building Bridges
there because a fortune-teller had told him that it would be a safe
place to be.
Fortunately, when the Japanese soldiers came, Ethel Poy had her
mother with her. She hid in the cupboard with blankets over her,
while her mother took Neville and his sister, Adrienne, and sat on the
floor in front of the cupboard. Her mother told the soldiers that they
were alone. It was a very close call. After the Japanese soldiers left,
Ethel and her mother took the children to join her brother David and
his wife, Connie, downtown. The servants in the apartment told Bill
Poy where they had gone.
After he found his family, Poy told his wife that he had to return to
their apartment, to retrieve three diamonds which he had hidden in one
of the legs of their sideboard. He used the Eu's cook's ID card again. On
his way, he was stopped by a sentry, but he was able to explain, with
his few words of Japanese learnt as a youth in Manchuria, that he need-
ed to go home to fetch clothes for his children. As he was approaching
their apartment, he saw their dining table on the street for sale.
When he entered the apartment with a Japanese sentry, he saw
clothes strewn everywhere, some of which had been used as toilet
paper. The sideboard was still there, but he had to get rid of the sen-
try. Fortunately, the sentry was called away for a few minutes, and
Poy got the diamonds out just in time before he returned. "You've
never seen anyone working so fast with a screw driver!" Poy told me.
The sentry then asked him, "Are you twenty-six?" That was the age
on the ID card. If the question had been, "How old are you?" he
would have been in grave trouble because he had forgotten to check
the cook's age on the card.
Bill Poy returned to his family downtown. He wanted to take them
up to Euston, but by then it was dark and there was a curfew. Ethel
said, "You go and return with help tomorrow morning."
The next morning Bill and one of the Eu's servants found the apart-
ment empty. The walls were covered with bullet holes and smeared
with blood. His neighbours told him his wife and children were hid-
ing under the stairwell. He found Neville holding a flask, and Ethel
had Adrienne on her back, with biscuits in her hands, Ethel's mother,
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 47
David and Connie had already left but Ethel and her children had
waited for Bill.
Apparently, after Bill left, Japanese soldiers had come to the build-
ing to look for young women. Ethel's mother put Ethel and Connie
in the cupboard and put a blanket over them. She and David put a
mattress on the floor, and lay down with Neville and Adrienne, in
front of the cupboard. Two Japanese soldiers came into their apart-
ment with flashlights (there was no electricity), and fortunately, just
in the nick of time, the Kempeitai (Japanese Military Police) came in
and told the soldiers to leave.
With the servant carrying Adrienne, Bill, Ethel and Neville walked
to Wan Chai, where they saw a big street parade with Japanese on
white horses, and soldiers carrying their dead comrades in boxes.
They passed a small family restaurant and went in to get something
to eat. They bought a chicken for one hundred dollars, and ate it
while waiting for the parade to pass. They then headed to Euston,
where there was no sign of war, and there was food. When Neville
went to bed that night, he asked if he could stay there forever?
The Japanese army took over the Queen Mary Hospital and every-
one was told to go except the mechanic Ah Law, who was needed to
operate the hospital steam room and the big stove. Everything,
including all the medicine, was discarded, and replaced by shipments
from Japan. After some months, Ah Law was dismissed?'
Some of the staff of the Queen Mary Hospital served in the relief hos-
pital that had been set up at St. Stephen's Girls' College. St. Stephen's
remained a hospital for close to five years and admitted only Chinese
Hong Kong citizens. A small classroom was converted for minor
surgery and dressings. There were Chinese and Irish doctors, such as
Dr. G.E. Griffiths. Dr. K.D. Ling and Dr. Raymond Lee. Most of the
British nursing sisters and the doctors were, by then, interned, with the
exception of Dr. Selwyn Selwyn- Clarke," who continued to serve as
Director of Medical Services. In that capacity, he was able to help many
of the citizens of Hong Kong during the occupation. Joseph Tarn and
other medical staff were given notes by Dr. Selwyn-Clarke so that they
would get employment with the British, should they get to Free China.-'
48 Building Bridges
丁 he Hong Kong-based research department of the China Tea
Company was closed. The Chinese Finance Ministry gave instruc-
tions that the money in the company in Hong Kong was to be
distributed to all the employees and each received the equivalent of
four months' salary. C.T. Wu volunteered to help withdraw the
money from the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank for the company,
and in the distribution of the cash, took his share in ten-dollar bills,
because he felt they would be much more acceptable than the larger
bills in times of war. He was right, because later the Japanese banned
the use of notes larger than ten dollars. With this money he went into
China as a refugee.
Two days after the Poys arrived in Euston, Bill Poy went downtown
to Pedder Street. He passed a French jewellery shop that he sometimes
visited with Eu Tongsan, Willy's father. The shop was flying a Vichy flag
(a sign of neutrality). Poy had an idea. He knew the Japanese wanted
watches and so asked the owner, Mr. Walsh, if he would trust him to sell
some watches to the Japanese for him. Mr. Walsh gave him ten of the
ones that were more difficult to sell, and a couple of the lower line of
Rolexes. Poy went straight to the headquarters of the Kempeitai where
he saw sacks of flour and rice, as well as cigarettes and whisky. When
the sergeant in charge asked how much the Rolex was, Poy told him,
"For you, it's free." The sergeant then offered Poy goods from the sta-
tion and Poy asked for a sack of flour, cigarettes, whisky and some rice.
The sergeant not only gave these items to him, but had them delivered
to Euston. However, the flour was found to be full of weevils. When Poy
told the sergeant, he asked Poy if he could sell the remaining sacks of
flour for him. Poy went to a Chinese friend who in turn sold these to the
Japanese. For each sack, the sergeant got forty yen and Poy kept sixty
yen. From then on, if the Japanese wanted to buy anything, Poy would
go and look for them. At that time, one Japanese yen was equivalent to
two Hong Kong dollars, and it was useful to have some Japanese money.
By hanging around the Kempeitai headquarters, Poy was able to
help his friends get supplies such as rice and flour. Within a short
time, he became friendly with more members of the Kempeitai, who
visited them in Euston and sometimes brought rice. Since the Kem-
peitai had control of Hong Kong, the family did not suffer. Neville,
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To Thk Japanese 49
only six then, remembers that the sergeant of the Kempeitai was very
nice to him and Adrienne, who was three. Neville, being musical, was
often asked to perform for the Japanese when they visited them.
However, to his parents' great concern, he liked to sing Qi Lai, a Chi-
nese revolutionary song that schoolchildren used to sing at assembly
in school every morning, and to play Colonel Bogey on the piano. His
parents had to stop him whenever he wanted to perform these pieces
when the Kempeitai were around. For the rest of her life, his mother
never lost her fear of or dislike for the Japanese.
Japan not only needed Hong Kong as a naval base, but also con-
sidered it as a source of income and of material wealth. Anything that
could be of use in Japan was confiscated, including cars, building
materials and machinery, and shipped to Japan. The Japanese helped
themselves to whatever they liked. Aunt Jenny's family car was taken
by the Japanese, but they were fortunate that the soldiers gave them
a bag of rice in exchange. The soldiers even took their pet monkey.
Hong Kong harbour was filled with heavily loaded outgoing cargo
ships. Few armaments left by the British were taken by the Japanese
because the guerrillas as well as the local population got there first.
Some of these were smuggled into China. There was a thriving mar-
ket of British armaments between December 10 and December 31，
1941, in the Kowloon City area. The buyers were Hong Kong peo-
ple, Sai Kung villagers, as well as the guerrillas.
The Chinese Guerrillas
After the British surrender, the Lee family members left the Lee
Theatre and went home. Mother and the three of us went to live in
the Lee Building with many other members of the family. The Big
House had been looted and there were many dead bodies lying
around because the Japanese soldiers shot looters on sight. It was a
very difficult time for Mother, being so young and with three small
children. What she didn't know was that she was looked after by
"agents" sent by Father, since he could not be there himself.
The "agents" were Chinese guerrillas or guerrilla sympathizers.
Few people in Hong Kong knew that Chinese guerrillas and agents of
50 Building Bridges
various political factions had infiltrated into the New Territories by
the beginning of 1941. There were official guerrillas who were paid
and armed by the Nationalist government under Chiang Kaishek.
However, the most active guerrilla group in Hong Kong after the
British surrender on Christmas Day 1941 was that of the Hong
Kong-Kowloon Brigade, a subdivision of the East River Detachment,
the foundation of which was laid by Liao Chengzhi in Hong Kong
after the fall of Guangzhou. The Detachment went officially under
the Communist banner in December 1943, when the name changed
to the Guangdong People's Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Corps.
The Chinese guerrillas in the Colony had a network for intelligence,
communications and sabotage. During the initial stage of the occupa-
tion, guerrillas of different political stripes were busy smuggling
important Chinese and Allied nationals out of Hong Kong. One of the
first was Liao Chengzhi, who escaped on January 5, 1942, Within the
first seven months of occupation, more than three hundred important
Chinese nationals were rescued. Among the more well-known names
were: He Xiangning, Liu Yazi, Zhou Taofen, Mao Dun, Qiao Guanhua,
Sa Kongliao, Liang Shuming, Hu Die, the famous movie star, and
Shang-Guan Xiande, the wife of Yu Hanmou, Commander of the Sev-
enth War Zone of the Central Chinese Army.-- Admiral Chen Ce, the
chief Nationalist intelligence agent in Hong Kong who liaised with the
British, made an escape on his own. Escapees from POW camps were
assisted by the guerrillas and guerrilla sympathizers, who took them
across the water by sampan or overland through mountain paths. The
guerrillas worked with the villagers in the New Territories to hide and
feed escapees, and lead them into Free China. Children as young as nine
years old were recruited into the guerrilla camp to help as runners and
as spies. They were called Siugui (Little Devils).
The first plans for escape from a POW camp were made in Shum
Shui Po in January 1942 by Lt.-Col. Lindsay T. Ride, of the Hong
Kong Volunteer Defence Corps Field Ambulance, and Lance-Corporal
Francis Lee Yiu Piu, who had originally been with No. 3 Machine Gun
Company of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps, but who trans-
ferred to Field Ambulance to be with Ride. Ride was an Australian
doctor and teacher who was appointed to the Chair of Physiology at
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 51
the University of Hong Kong in 1928. He had served in the First World
War and was twice wounded in France. Lee, a slim, bespectacled and
shy clerk, worked in the Physiology department and had earned respect
and admiration from Ride for his hard work. Lec was not supposed to
be in Shum Shui P() camp, because Chinese members of the Hong Kong
Volunteers were given permission to return home. He told Ride he
remained because he wanted to know what it was like being a POW,
and he also wanted to stay in case Ride needed help to escape, and he
felt he would be of more use inside than outside the camp. He played
a vital role in the escape.
Lee made their travel arrangements with the help of contacts inside
the camp, guerrillas or guerrilla sympathizers who delivered food or
supplies. Many were later killed by the Japanese for what they had
done. When the escape plans were made, Ride and Lee were joined
by Lieutenant D.W. Morley, a lecturer in Engineering at the Universi-
ty of Hong Kong, and Sub-Lieutenant D.F. Davies, a lecturer in
Physics at the same university, both from the Hong Kong Royal Navy
Volunteer Reserve. The group escaped on January 9, 1942.'^
The party was picked up by sampan and let off on a beach near
Castle Peak Road. From there they walked through the New Territo-
ries, dodging Japanese search parties while they made their way to the
outskirts of Sai Kung. After the occupation, the Japanese had left the
Sai Kung peninsula in the hands of Wang Jingwei's men. (Wang was a
Nationalist minister who defected to the Japanese side. He was Chi-
ang Kaishek's most important rival in the Nationalist party.)'" Then
bandits moved in and caused chaos. Fortunately for the escape party,
on January 9, the guerrillas had taken control of the Sai Kung penin-
sula. When the news of the escape reached the guerrillas and Wang
Jingwei's men, they raced to see who could get to the escapees first.
The Hong Kong-Kowloon Brigade leader was Cai Gualiang, whom
Lee brought to meet the escapees at a rendezvous. Ride described in
his diary the amazing experience he had of seeing Chinese villagers
appear from nowhere to help them. Without them, the escape cer-
tainly would have failed. The escape party was given food, shelter and
clothing. Dressed as Chinese villagers, they arrived in Free China on
January 17, 1942.^^
Gsfiiad 農 -Hong Kong Resource C* -"Wv-^
t S"dtfu CfMceiu. Km I li • Tofonio. CaA»<l« • MSS I A *
52 Building Bridges
In Free China, Ride was instrumental in starting the British Army
Aid Group (BAAG) in order to pass much-needed medical supplies into
the POW camps, plan escapes and help those who managed to escape
on their own to reach safety. BAAG was established under MI9 because
it was also part of British Intelligence, with the reluctant approval of the
Chinese government, which did not want to have foreign Intelligence
working within China. However, the British were allies in the war. The
work of BAAG in Hong Kong could not have been carried out without
the help of the guerrillas. In Ride's report to the War Office, the guer-
rillas were referred to as "our" guerrillas because they were the escapees'
lifeline to Free China, and at times "red" guerrillas because of their
Communist leanings. Ride considered them to be "the most active, reli-
able, efficient and anti-Japanese of all Chinese organizations."^^
The Chinese guerrillas infiltrated every aspect of life in Hong Kong
under Japanese occupation. They were in the city and in the villages.
They worked in Japanese banks, printing presses and even in the
Japanese high command. They were involved in espionage, sabotage
and rescue missions. They were an important link between the people
of Hong Kong and the free world.
The control in the Japanese occupation zone was actually quite
porous. People were smuggled back and forth across Japanese lines
between Hong Kong and mainland China. It was also possible to sail
to neutral areas like Macao or the French colony of Guangzhouwan,
and then into China.
Initially, the guerrillas assisted many POWs to escape, but then it
became too difficult, and the punishment of the prisoners who were
left behind so severe that escape was no longer worthwhile. They
passed information to the Chinese High Command, some of which
was passed on to the Allies. It was with this information that the U.S.
Air Force was able to bomb Hong Kong during the occupation, and a
number of times guerrillas rescued Allied airmen who were shot down
during these bombing raids.
Father As a Resistance Fighter
Since 1937, Father had been involved both in an official and an
unofficial capacity in the Chinese resistance against the Japanese. He
Storm Clouds Gather: Hong Kong Falls To The Japanese 53
wanted to help as many people as possible, while making sure that
his family was well looked after. His "guerrilla" activities involved
both the Nationalist guerrillas and the pro-Chinese Communist Party
guerrillas based in the East River Basin, Guangdong province. If it
had not been for the protection of the guerrillas, it would have been
almost impossible for our family, during the entire duration of the
war, to escape unscathed, not only from the Japanese, but also from
the Chinese bandits who were just as cruel.'"
Father did not belong to any political parry, and his actions were
considered beyond reproach by both the Nationalists and the Com-
munists. Once he overheard that the Nationalist Party was going to
arrest Zhou Enlai who was with the Nationalists at the time (Zhou
was the Chinese Communist Party liaison officer with the Nationalist
Party, under safe conduct from Chiang Kaishek), and he immediately
warned Zhou to escape, Zhou never forgot that. After the war, Zhou
gave an order to the Xinhua News Agency, which was in effect an
unofficial Chinese consulate in Hong Kong, that Father was to be
given free access anywhere in China.-'
Father was in Huizhou, a Chinese guerrilla base in the East River
Basin, when Mother and the three of us arrived in China. I don't
believe he ever joined the guerrillas because the situation was very
confusing. Different factions were competing with each other while
working against the Japanese. 丁 here were actually two types of guer-
rillas, the "red" guerrillas and the official guerrillas who operated in
Guangdong under General Yu Hanmou. In addition, there were spies
from Wang Jingwei's group, the British Army Aid Group and others.
During those years, Father became friends with Soong Chingling, the
widow of Dr. Sun Yatsen, and Edgar Snow, Mao Zedong's friend, as
well as many top officials from the Nationalist government of Chiang
Kaishek. After the war, Edgar Snow used Father's office whenever he
was in Hong Kong.--
Father acted as a liaison between the escapees from Hong Kong,
the guerrillas and the Chinese government, and his position was that
of a humanitarian. He was frequently mentioned in Lt.-Col. Lindsay
Ride's diary for his help in getting supplies such as blankets and med-
icine to POWs in Hong Kong and the refugees who made it into
China. It was likely that he was able to get these supplies because he
54 Building Bridges
was the treasurer of the Chinese Red Cross. Father's other wartime
activities will be mentioned in a later chapter. Fourth Uncle told me
that he went to see Father in Qujiang (the wartime capital of Guang-
dong province after the fall of Guangzhou to the Japanese), in
northern Guangdong province, in 1942, where Father was with Ride
at the British Army Aid Group headquarters. Fourth Uncle, who was
working for the Bank of China, was fortunate enough to be trans-
ferred to London and remained there until 1947. Ride and Father
earned each other's respect and became good friends. After the war,
when Ride became the vice-chancellor of the University of Hong
Kong, Father was on the Council.
0
4
A Family On The
Run
The years between 1941 and 1945 were the early years of my life.
As a war baby, I went with my family into China as refugees.
Many events were told to me by others who were there. However, I
do have some memories that remain fresh even decades later.
Under the Japanese administration, there was widespread propa-
ganda of "A New Asia where Asians were ruled by Asians," meaning
Asians ruled by the Japanese. People constantly lived in fear. The
wealthier managed to buy rice at black market prices, and the rest just
died of starvation.
By the beginning of 1942, the Japanese military made a public
announcement of their intention to reduce the population in Hong
Kong from 1,600,000 to what they deemed a "manageable" number
of 500,000. They very nearly succeeded. The unfortunate were
picked up in the streets and taken by truckloads to junks in the har-
bour. These were towed out to sea and sunk or set on fire. In 1942
alone, 83,435 burials were recorded, many being victims of war, ter-
rorism and reprisals.' The rest of the population was reduced by
starvation to the point where cannibalism was practised. The rice
ration of 8.46 oz. per person per day was provided for those who
were fortunate enough to get it and this was often mixed with sand.
The streets of Hong Kong were dreadful sights. People lying in the
streets were cut up for meat before they were dead, and anyone who
55
56 Building Bridges
forgot to bow to a Japanese soldier risked being decapitated. When-
ever Joseph Tarn went to visit his girlfriend's home on Bonham Road,
he would see truckloads of dead bodies being dumped into a long rec-
tangular pit on the side of the Upper-level Police Station- (the
present-day site of King George VI park), which was situated just
below Euston, where the Poys were staying with the Eu family. In
Central Market, Chinese tea houses were turned into gambling
places. Special red-light districts in the city, known as comfort sta-
tions, were set up for the Japanese soldiers.
Retreat from Hong Kong
The Chinese in Hong Kong were encouraged by the Japanese occu-
pation government to return to China. Many in the Lee and the
Wong families went to different parts of China, although a few chose
to remain in Hong Kong.
The only branch of the Lee family that went to our ancestral vil-
lage, Garlieu, was Second Uncle, with his wife and the three younger
children. His older son and daughter went into China with the rest of
the Lee family. Because of that, their experiences over the war years
were different from those of the rest of the family. They went by boat
through the Pearl River, then made their way to Garlieu. The two
older boys, aged three and five at the beginning of the war, attended
the village school.
Whenever there was news that the Japanese soldiers were in the
area, the entire village would hide in the little huts in the fields, or
they would all move to a neighbouring village to get out of the way.
Cousin Raymand, who was three at the beginning of the war, remem-
bers that whenever the villagers had to go into hiding, he and his
younger sister would be put into large baskets, and carried on a bam-
boo pole. However, his older brother, Hon Ching, who was five at the
time, had to walk with the adults. The problems in the village were
caused not only by Japanese soldiers, but also bandits, who looted
villages at will. As a child, Raymand thought it very exciting when-
ever there was news of bandits approaching, because the whole
village would assemble at our ancestral home, which was large
A Family On The Run 57
enough to accommodate the entire village, and Second Uncle would
give out guns to all adult males who defended predetermined posts,
turning the house into a fortress. Cousin Raymand does not recollect
any major damage done by bandits during their stay in Garlieu.^
er) went into China as refugees with their respective families. Helena,
the older daughter of Second Uncle, followed Second Grandmother.
Fourth Grandmother (concubine Ng Yuet) went to her own home
town of Wuzhou in Guangxi province. All the teenaged children trav-
elled to China together, and they attended school wherever they went.
The only person who stayed was Third Grandmother (concubine So
Han) who remained in Hong Kong with her son, Fifth Uncle, who
worked in our rental office throughout the war years, collecting rent."
Our family members took two routes to enter China ― by land
through Sha Tau Kok or by boat to Zhanjiang, formerly known as
Guangzhouwan which was under the Vichy government, and there-
fore neutral. Many of us met up in China.'
Since Father was not able to get back to Hong Kong to take charge
of us, he sent an underground messenger, probably a member of the
guerrilla force, with a letter to Mother, asking her to follow the man
into China with all of us. Mother at first suspected a trap and refused
to go. When a second letter came, she decided to leave.
Many refugees sewed bits of jewellery into the lining of their
clothes, or hid them in the soles of their shoes since they were subject
to body searches by the Japanese and robbery by bandits. Jewellery
could be used as cash, but the value was difficult to determine. By far
the most valuable form of money was gold coins, which were easily
convertible for the purchase of food and other necessary items. Moth-
er must have hidden whatever she could in our baggage and clothing.
However, she buried the bulk of her jewellery in the garden of the Big
House with the help of Bill Poy.
In February 1942, my family left for China together with thousands
of refugees from Hong Kong. Mother took four-year-old Richard,
two-year-old Deanna, and me, nine months old, two servants, and six
huge bags, and headed across the harbour by boat to the train station
on the Kowloon side, accompanied by Fourth Uncle and Bill Poy, and
58 Building Bridges
watched over by the guerrillas. Bill Poy had obtained passes from the
Kempeitai sergeant by telling them that Mother was his sister. He did
this to avoid the possibility of us being stopped and searched. With his
connections, he was also able to exchange some money for Mother
before we left. After the war, Father asked Poy for the name of the
Kempeitai sergeant in order to find him to thank him.*' Whether he
was successful or not, we don't know.
The train was crowded and we had difficulty stuffing our bags in.
Fourth Uncle said goodbye at the train station, and we headed for Fan
Ling, still accompanied by Bill Poy. We got off at Fan Ling and Moth-
er hired some bicycles to carry our luggage. From there, we walked
with a stream of refugees towards Sha Tau Kok, one of the entry points
into China. Richard and Deanna were carried by the servants on their
backs, and Mother carried me. At Sha Tau Kok, Bill Poy said goodbye
to us and Mother immediately destroyed the passes. Then we boarded
a boat. When we got off we walked for about a day to Huiyang, and
boarded another boat again to reach Father in Huizhou.
From Huizhou, we travelled by truck to Shaoguan, in the northern
part of Guangdong province, and then by train to Guilin.' Father
instructed his younger siblings and nephew Hon Chiu to follow the
same route, and to meet us in Guilin. We were able to travel safely
through enemy- and- bandit controlled territories probably because
we had the protection of the guerrillas.
Soon after my family left, news came to Bill Poy from the Canadi-
an Trade Commissioner's office where he was an employee, that he
and his family had a chance to go to Canada. It seemed that they were
fortunate enough to have been put on the list for diplomatic exchange
between the United States and Japanese governments. The U.S. gov-
ernment was exchanging Americans captured by the Japanese for
Japanese interned in America/ Since there were more Japanese than
Americans, Canadians were allowed to make up the difference. And
since all Canadian soldiers in Hong Kong were in POW camps, the
deficiencies were made up by the employees of the Canadian Trade
Commissioner's office.
When Bill Poy heard the news, he thought it might be a trap set
by the Japanese. He went to their family doctor, who was a brother-
A Family On The Run 59
in-law, to get his wife's X-ray which showed a scar in one of her
lungs. Then he went to see the Kempeitai sergeant to sound him out
to see if it was a trap. The sergeant advised him to take his family to
Canada when Poy showed him the X-ray, saying that his wife really
needed treatment. The sergeant didn't know that it was an old X-ray.
The Poys ― Bill and Ethel, Neville and Adrienne ― left Hong Kong
in August 1942. To this day, the Poys don't know how their names got
on the list. When they arrived in Canada, immigration officials told
them they were not allowed into the country because they were Chi-
nese, until they saw their names on the exchange list. They were
permitted to stay, becoming the first Chinese refugees in history to
arrive in Canada. They were given housing, and Bill Poy continued to
work for the Canadian government in Ottawa in the Department of
Trade and Commerce. 丁 hey had originally planned to return to Hong
Kong after the war, but because of conditions in Hong Kong in 1945,
Poy decided that the family should stay in Canada. They were made
Canadian citizens by an Order in Council in Parliament in April 1949.
Life in Guilin
On our way to Guilin, Father encountered C.T. Wu again in
Liuzhou. It was here that Wu met Mother, my siblings and me for the
first time, and from then on, he became very close to our family.
In Guilin, we lived in a large house outside the entrance to the
Seven Star Cave, which is a well-known tourist attraction. In 1942,
houses were built right in front of the cave where now a road runs
through to bring tourists to the site. Whenever there was an air raid,
which happened more and more often as the Japanese advanced
towards Guangxi province, we went into the cave for shelter.
Cousin Hon Chiu, who was in boarding school, used to stay with
us on weekends. He came to get a little more to eat, because the
boarding schools provided only two meals a day, and the children
were always hungry. One of our servants, Suen Zeh, who was with
us in Guilin, told Hon Chiu that we had ghosts in that house. From
then on, he thought he actually felt someone pressing on top of him
when he slept. He never dared to mention this to my parents, but
60 Building Bridges
whenever he had the excuse, he slept in Second Aunt's house, which
was only five minutes away on Jiangan Road? Hon Chiu also said
that he would go to whichever house had more food. Hon Chiu was
with us, off and on, during the entire period of the war, and so was
Second Grandmother.
We lived in Guilin for over a year. During our stay there, our two
servants gave notice that they were going to leave. Mother thought it
wise to go back to Hong Kong before the servants got there, because
she was sure that they knew where her jewellery was buried. Jew-
ellery could be used as cash, and it was necessary for our survival. She
also needed to bring into China as many of our household necessities
as possible.
Leaving us in the care of the servants and Father, Mother headed
for Hong Kong with her sister Sarah, through Zhanjiang. However,
Aunt Sarah could not get a pass to go to Hong Kong, so Mother went
alone, while her sister waited for her in Zhanjiang. This meant that
she had the added responsibility of getting Aunt Sarah's household
belongings as well as her own.
Mother went back to the Big House to gather our belongings with
the help of servants who had remained in Hong Kong. The first two
floors of the Big House were covered with dead bodies. These were
bodies of looters who had died from shrapnel or had been killed by
Japanese soldiers who shot looters on sight. It seemed the looters
never made it to the third floor where my family used to live. Mother
told us how they had to walk over the dead bodies to get around. She
used the third floor to pack the household belongings because the par-
quet floors on the ground and second floors were caked with blood.
(After the war they had to be completely replaced because they could
not be cleaned.) I can't even begin to imagine how Mother managed.
Mother stayed in the Lee Building, further up the hill from Wan
Chai, which had not been looted. She saw her parents and her
younger sister, Josephine, who visited her there. One day, Mother was
with her mother when they passed someone dying in the street and
the person cried out, "Please save me!" The two women were help-
less themselves, but Grandmother Wong, being a religious person,
said, "Pray to Jesus, and He will help you."
A Family On The Run 61
In Mother's later years, especially after Father died, whenever she
came across any difficulties, she would tell me that since she had sur-
vived the war, she was no longer afraid of anything.
Mother stayed in Hong Kong for a couple of weeks, then left by
boat for Zhanjiang to meet Sarah. Everyone was convinced that
Mother was well protected by the guerrillas. She brought with her
not only her jewellery, hidden in all kinds of places, but also more
than twenty large bags of household necessities, some of which
belonged to her sister. The most important items were warm clothing
and padded silk blankets.'"
People had the most imaginative ways of hiding things during war-
time. I love the story of how one of my parents' friends, Lucy Chan,
a lawyer, whom I was to meet in 1949, handled the situation. She
boldly wore all her jewellery, big diamonds and all, and convinced the
Japanese soldiers that they were fake.
When Mother returned to Guilin, she gave a padded silk blanket
to C.T. Wu, for which he was very thankful, because throughout the
war years he was always cold, but could not possibly afford to buy
one himself. To this day, he has high regard for Mother as a very
brave woman.
Throughout the war years, Mother sold or bartered her jewellery
for our family to live on. For personal reasons, Father refused
repeated offers to work as an engineer for the Americans in China,
but carried on with his wartime resistance activities and was, there-
fore, without an income. He worked closely with the Chinese
Central government, the East River guerrillas, as well as the British
Army Aid Group, on a voluntary basis. He had all his light-coloured
clothing dyed dark in order to cut down on laundry. Being a thrifty
person, his needs were few. We were barely managing financially,
but he told Mother that when the war was over, everything would
be fine. She was not to worry about our lack of possessions or the
disposal of her jewellery, for he would replace them, and he cer-
tainly kept his promise.
When the Japanese reached Guangxi in 1942, the repair and the
completion of the Qian Qui (Guizhou Guangxi) railway lines"
became of immediate importance for the movement of refugees. The
62 Building Bridges
Central government formed a committee of four engineers,'- headed
by Hou Jiayuan, who was a Kuomingtang (Nationalist) member.
However, they still needed someone capable and reliable to supervise
the work, and Father was chosen for the job, and made an Honorary
Kuomingtang Executive Member."
At that time, C.T. Wu was the manager of the Yong Guang Coal
Company" in Guilin. Father convinced him that he would have a bet-
ter future with us, and he became Father's secretary. Father needed
someone like C.T. Wu who could speak Mandarin fluently, as Father
could not. Wu often had to express what Father wanted to say at
meetings. The two of them represented the Central government, and
neither one was a genuine Kuomingtang member."
Wu accompanied our family to Yishan, in Guangxi province,
where the Head Office of the Railway Administration was located.
Here, Director Hou Jiayuan gave us a piece of land close to the
Administration Head Office, on which Father designed and person-
ally supervised the building of a two-storey house for us to live in.
This house was built in the typical local fashion, of woven bamboo
sheets patched with mud. Ours was better built than most, because
Father had some concrete mixed in with the mud, and the mixture
was thick enough to stop the wind coming through the walls."' By the
time we built our house in Yishan, Second Grandmother rejoined us.
All through the war years, Father was, among other things, a vol-
unteer treasurer for the Red Cross in China. Because of this
connection, he had in his possession the drug Sulphanilamide which
was not readily available in China. While in Yishan, C.T. Wu had a
bad infection on his arm that was treated by this drug.''
From time to time, C.T. Wu had to represent Father in a supervi-
sory capacity when Father was down with malaria.'** In later years,
Father always prided himself that he had never been sick in his life,
but he had forgotten the war years. When Father's health deteriorat-
ed to a point when he felt he had to resign his post as the Honorary
Kuomingtang Executive Member looking after the repair and build-
ing of the Qian Qui railway lines, he found alternative employment
for Wu. Through his friends Lu Yanming, Lian Yingzhou"" and Ou-
Yang Qi,-' Father arranged a job for Wu with the Overseas Union
A Family On The Run 63
Bank of Singapore in Liuzhou. This bank was owned by overseas
Chinese from Shantao, China, and under normal conditions, only
Chinese from Shantao were trusted as employees. An exception was
made for Wu because of Father's recommendation, and he was put in
a position of trust, with responsibility for buying supplies for the
bank.22 However, a few months later Liuzhou fell to the Japanese, and
the bank moved to Chongqing.
On the Run Again
By 1943, with Japanese troops advancing, it was too dangerous to
stay in Guilin. The five teenagers 一 my uncles, aunts and cousin Hon
Chiu ― needed to move to safer areas, but train tickets were impos-
sible to come by. Former Lee Theatre employee and friend of the
family, Yuen Yaohong, came to their rescue. He knew someone high
up in the Central government bureaucracy, Huang Maolan, whose
father was a general. Yuen persuaded them to let the teenagers cram
into the general's private carriage on the train. They arrived in
Liuzhou, temporarily safe. From there, they took a train to Yishan.
By that time, we had already left for Dushan in Guizhou province.
Second Grandmother was still in our house in Yishan when the five
of them moved in. Hon Chiu remembers that we had a garden where
we planted a lot of tomatoes, and we also raised chickens. It was at
this time that he learnt to kill chickens. He said if he hadn't, no one
would have had chicken for dinner. They stayed in Yishan for a little
while and then followed us to Dushan.
Transportation was always a problem in China, particularly dur-
ing the war. Father's friend Wang Aigai, who was in charge of
transportation for the Bank of China, had a fleet of trucks which pro-
vided a means of transport for our family members from Yishan to
Dushan. Dushan was a hilly town and our house was on the out-
skirts. Conditions were primitive, and there was no running water.
When the teenage uncles, aunts and Hon Chiu arrived, they attended
school there; Hon Chiu was in junior high school at the time. Father
would take Hon Chiu with him every day to bathe in a nearby brook
with a waterfall, no matter how cold it was. My older brother was
64 Building Bridges
spared because he was too young to withstand the cold. Father used
to tell Hon Chiu about his past, and about his engineering studies at
Oxford" The bonding between uncle and nephew began at this time,
and Mother remembered Hon Chiu saying that he would like to be
like Father when he grew up.
In Dushan I became very ill. I was just skin and bones and too
weak to hold my head up. Mother said I looked like a starved kitten,
I was so small and frail. I was taken to a very primitive hospital, and
one day the woman missionary doctor told Mother that I was about
to die, and that Father should be called to see me for the last time.
My teenaged Sixth Uncle, who was with Mother at the time, hopped
on his bike and rode home to fetch Father. When Father heard the
news, he came, bringing with him the only "magical" drug he had in
his possession ― Sulphanilamide. The doctor had never heard of it,
but Father asked her to give it to me, since there was nothing to lose.
丁 he drug saved my life.
I was a burden during the war because I was sick all the time, and
ended up in hospital wherever we went. I started getting sick at the
age of seven months, when Hong Kong surrendered to the Japanese.
I had intestinal problems, dehydration, and once I had lymphangitis
of the leg. My parents thought many times that they had lost me. On
top of that, both my parents and my older brother had malaria. For-
tunately, we all survived, and I lived to tell the tale.
As the Japanese troops were advancing into Guizhou, it was time
for us to leave Dushan. By this time, I was old enough to know what
was going on. After one of the bombing raids, Mother and I hap-
pened to walk past our former house. She was very surprised that I
immediately recognized it even though the roof was gone, and only
the thick walls were still standing.
When we left, we once again had the help of Wang Aigai's trans-
port fleet of the Bank of China. We travelled with them, on top of the
cargo, to Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou. 丁 he journey along the
hilly mountain roads was treacherous, and going downhill was hair-
raising, especially when the brakes didn't work very well. Along the
way, the convoy was stopped several times by Nationalist troops
turned bandits. Fortunately, we were not harmed.-"' As a child of two,
A Family On The Run 65
I can remember climbing on top of the cargo using something that
resembled a rope ladder, and holding on for dear life. I also remem-
ber being very carsick and throwing up hard-boiled eggs. Wherever
we travelled in the primitive unhygenic parts of China, Father would
not buy any cooked food (he described all the meats as looking black
because they were covered with flies), so we had to survive on hard-
boiled eggs. It has taken me fifty years to get over my phobia of
hard-boiled eggs.
It was a lengthy journey. When we arrived in Guiyang, it was
evening, and the sky was getting dark. The trucks arrived at a theatre,
and out came former Lee Theatre employee Yuen Yaohong with a bag
in his hand. He said to Father, "Dick, take this. It's for you." It was a
bag filled with money. Hon Chiu said that it was a moment he would
never forget, he was so impressed. No one in our family had money
during the war. Yuen was managing that theatre in Guiyang at the time.
He also looked after our living accommodations. In a house that was
not soundproof, with my family upstairs, and Second Grandmother, the
teenage uncles and aunts, Hon Chiu and his sister Helena downstairs,
Hon Chiu said he could hear everything that went on upstairs.
Life in Chongqing
From Guiyang we moved on to Chongqing, in Sichuan province,
again by the Bank of China convoy. This part of the journey was more
secure because it was better controlled by the Nationalist troops. When
we entered Sichuan, we were exposed to practices and foods that were
distinctly different from those in southeast China. Sichuan foods were
hot with chili, and it was difficult for us to eat because we were not
used to it. Mother found it rather an appalling custom that the wealth-
ier inhabitants had their coffins made ahead of time and placed under
their own beds.
Since I was just a small child, I have only interesting memories. The
adults had the worries, and I was the observer ― that is, when I wasn't
in hospital. I had the greatest adventures with our servants all over the
countryside, in my wooden clogs in the summer and cloth shoes in the
winter. Leather was saved for making boots for the soldiers, so civilians
66 Building Bridges
didn't have leather shoes. We would walk along the rice paddies to see
the farmers working and watch people picking snails. In our home snails
from rice fields were never eaten because of parasites. Just the same, it
was interesting to watch. One day, the servant and I heard a great com-
motion as we were walking, and we went to see what the excitement
was all about. We saw a large catfish struggling for air, stranded in very
shallow water. It would be somebody's dinner. Another time, we heard
that in one of the farms in the vicinity, a cow was about to give birth.
The servant took me there just in time to see the birth of the calf. It was
a wonderful learning experience for a child. Sometimes we would go to
buy eggs, and some of these eggs would be fertilized. I still remember the
embryos when the eggs were cracked open. Once, someone had the idea
of having goat's milk, so my teenaged Seventh Uncle got hold of a goat
and tried to milk it. What a sight!
When we entered Chongqing, we crossed the Yangtse River. We
joined Grandmother, Third Uncle and Fifth Aunt, who were fortunate
enough to have flown directly from Guilin in the transport plane of
the Shanghai Commercial Bank.-' They had not experienced the hard-
ship that we had. Sixth Uncle, sixteen years old, wanted to join the
Chinese army but was turned down because of his age. He left school
anyway in order to make some money, and worked for the Chinese
government as a translator because his English was good. He was later
sent to Burma.
In Chongqing, my family lived in Tao Yuan, a complex of houses
that belonged to the Tao family, friends of my parents. The complex
was built by Tao Guilin, who was the biggest contractor in China,
having built some of the most important buildings in the country,
especially in Nanjing and Shanghai? 丁 he Tao family lived in the
large house on the left as you entered the gate, and we lived in the last
house on the far right.
Grandmother, Third Uncle and some of the other uncles and aunts
lived in Tian Tan Xin Cun, which was owned by the Shanghai Com-
mercial Bank. Third Uncle, being a director of the bank, had the use
of one of its houses.
By the time we were in Chongqing, I was close to three years old.
I remember the little bungalow we had in Tao Yuan, on the banks of
A Family On The Run 67
the Yangtse River. It was a simple house, with the living room in
front, and the bedrooms at the back. The house was perched on the
bank of the river, so even though the entrance was at street level, the
end of the bedrooms was high above ground, since the river-bank was
steep. The interesting feature of this house was that the kitchen was
in a separate building down towards the river.
My brother, sister and I used to catch fireflies after dinner. We
would put them in a bottle, and watch them glow. We caught turtles
along the river-bank and tied them to a string attached to the back of
the sofa in the living room so that they would eat the mosquitoes.
The kitchen was so far down the river-bank that it always got
flooded. Whenever the water rose, all the adults in the family would
rush down to the kitchen to move everything to the house. After each
flood, I would have something new to play with, because the water
always brought interesting things to the shore. Once we caught a crab
that I wanted to play with, but Father was afraid that the pincers
would hurt me. He did not know about tying the pincers, so he
crushed them and put mercurochrome on them. He obviously did not
know the biological difference between a human being and a crab.
He tied a string on it so that I could walk it. We had no toys in those
days, and I certainly never missed them.
I had friends I played with and visited, who taught me to speak a
childish version of Mandarin which I've been able to retain to a cer-
tain extent since. During our years in China I came to be called Mei
Mei, for little sister, because I was the youngest of the three, and after
the war, I got stuck with the name May, short for Mei Mei. It was a
name I disliked because it is so common among Chinese girls.
While in Chongqing, we visited with our relatives, many of whom
ended up there. In fact, with the advancing Japanese armed forces, that
was the safest place to be, since it was the wartime capital of China.
On New Year's Eve 1944, my mother's younger brother Daniel,
his wife, Helen, and their children were visiting us at Tao Yuan. After
dinner, while the adults were chatting in the living room, the children
went into my parents' bedroom to play. All of a sudden, my older
brother felt sick, and he climbed up on a chair and vomited out of
the window. The rest of the children clamoured up to see what was
68 Building Bridges
happening, and suddenly my cousin Joan fell out of the wide win-
dow. Being the youngest, I was watching on the sideline. None of the
older children made a move, so I went into the living room to tell the
adults that cousin Joan had fallen out of the window.
One can imagine the hysteria. It was fortunate that electric wires
strung across the back of the house under the window broke her fall.
Otherwise she would have fallen a distance equal to two stories. Since
it was not only wartime in Chongqing, but also New Year's Eve, get-
ting medical attention was not a simple matter. However, my uncle
and aunt managed to get a couple of rickshaws to take them to the
closest hospital. Fortunately, cousin Joan was not badly injured, and
ended up with nothing more than a scar under her chin. Till the end
of my parents' days, they talked about my presence of mind at the age
of three and a half.
The Japanese Surrender
Hostilities ended in Europe in May 1945, and the war against Japan
assumed a different character. The objective in the Pacific became one
of bringing the war to a speedy conclusion with as few casualties as pos-
sible. On August 6, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima,
followed by another one on Nagasaki three days later. On August 14,
1945, at 23:30 Tokyo time, the Emperor of Japan formally announced
an unconditional surrender to the Supreme Command of the Allied
Forces.
On the same night in Chongqing, the Oversea Union Bank of Sin-
gapore was having a dinner party. Among the guests were Minister of
Foreign Affairs Chen Qingyun and the former mayor of Shanghai,
Wu Tiechen. Chen's family phoned the bank to let him know that the
Japanese had surrendered. Bank Chairman Lian Yingzhou and gen-
eral manager O- Yang Qi immediately asked C.T. Wu to buy
firecrackers. Lian and Ou-Yang, who were from Chaozhou (Guang-
dong province), did not know that the people of Sichuan only lit
firecrackers when someone had died. When the people on the street
heard the firecrackers going off, they thought someone at the bank
A Family On The Run 69
had died. That night, when the news was broadcast, no one slept. The
crowds in the streets celebrated and everyone got drunk."
In Hong Kong, the moment the news of the Japanese surrender
came, everyone went out onto the streets to look for Japanese soldiers
to beat up? Chiang Kaishek claimed that Hong Kong was part of the
China theatre, and therefore the Japanese forces should surrender to
him. The future of Hong Kong had been discussed in earlier wartime
summit meetings, and the retrocession of Hong Kong had been sup-
ported by President Roosevelt. However, Churchill was not going to
let that happen. For the next few days, there was confusion as to who
was going to take over from the Japanese government. A message was
sent to Franklin Gimson in Stanley camp, through the British Army
Aid Group agent Y. C. Leung, code-named "Phoenix," on August 23,
to take control of the government. Three days later, Gimson moved
out of the camp to take up office in the French Mission building in
town. On August 30, Admiral Sir Cecil Harcourt arrived with the
Royal Navy to begin the postwar military government of Hong Kong,
which lasted until May 1, 1946.
That August, Father, Third Uncle and Grandmother, flew back to
Hong Kong from Chongqing on the plane of Lieutenant-General Sir
Adrian Garten de Wiarte, who was the special representative of Prime
Minister Churchill in the China theatre. Having been under Japanese
rule since December 1941, Hong Kong's monetary system was in dis-
array. As one of the first to arrive back to Hong Kong, Father was
asked to hand-carry a large amount of cash for the Hong Kong and
Shanghai Bank.-'
Mother and the three of us, together with our servants, returned
to Hong Kong the usual way, as did other refugees in China. Moth-
er told us that the war was over and we were going home. Father had
to go first because he was needed immediately to help Hong Kong
get back on its feet. Part of our journey was on a small, crowded,
flat-bottomed boat, on which we placed our bedding next to each
other. The last part of our journey was by train and seats were diffi-
cult to come by. Fortunately, our family knew the stationmaster, who
told Mother that, in order to get seats, we had to be at the station at
70 Building Bridges
four o'clock in the morning. We took his advice, and we were on our
way home.
Our teenaged uncles and aunts, together with Hon Chiu, remained
in Chongqing to continue their schooling. Food for the boarders in
the schools in Chongqing was quite plentiful, unlike Guilin's two
meals a day, so when the older members of the family left to go back
to Hong Kong, they were not as badly missed. During this time,
whenever the teenagers needed money for school fees and living
expenses, they would go to the Shanghai Commercial Bank. Hon
Chiu remembers someone by the name of Karl Wu, a friend of Third
Uncle at the bank, who would invite Hon Chiu for coffee from time
to time. Hon Chiu was very impressed by the beautiful mansion Wu
owned.
In 1948, when Hon Chiu graduated from high school, he planned
to go to Shanghai to stay with Third Aunt and her American hus-
band, Henry Sperry, in order to take the entrance exams for Jiaotong
and Qinghua universities. By that time, the Chinese Communist Party
was already in control of northeast China and had reached Beijing,
Father telegraphed him to return to Hong Kong immediately to take
the entrance exam for Lingnan University in Guangzhou, and to wait
for an opportunity to go to the United States. When Hon Chiu left
Chongqing to return to Hong Kong, Wu saw him off at the airport.
The following year, China was liberated by the Communists, and
Hon Chiu never saw Wu again.
♦
5
After The War:
The Society Changes
At the end of the war, Hong Kong was in shambles. Then civil
war broke out in China. The ensuing tide of refugees to Hong
Kong caused a population explosion from 1.6 million in 1946 to 2.36
million by the end of 1950. In the first six months of 1950 alone,
700,000 refugees poured in from the mainland. In May of that year,
the government adopted a quota system, which proved to be totally
ineffective. Most of the refugees were unskilled labourers who were
willing to work and were determined to make their new homes in
Hong Kong. Some of them did not even know where Hong Kong was
before they arrived there.
Occasionally, my parents would get a phone call in the night from
a relative or a friend who had escaped from China and had reached
Hong Kong. 丁 he landscape became dotted with squatters. Many of
the huts on the hillsides were made from boards or scrap metal from
junkyards, and there were beggars everywhere.
The Chinese Communists erected loudspeakers at Lowu and Man
Kam To pointing towards Hong Kong, pouring forth propaganda
and abuse against the British in general and the authorities in Hong
Kong in particular. Along the border stood the guards from China
and Hong Kong, facing each other. The Chinese troops would shoot
anyone who was caught trying to escape. However, many did escape,
which contributed to the increase in Hong Kong's population.
71
72 Building Bridges
We were lucky to have homes to return to. We even had a large
garden where we had many fruit trees, a large chicken coop and a
tennis court. Grandmother moved back to the Big House with her
own children. Third Uncle got married and lived on the third floor as
we had done before the war. Fourth Uncle, who returned from Eng-
land in 1947, and Fifth Aunt lived on the second floor with
Grandmother. Grandmother's other daughter, Second Aunt, was mar-
ried before the war.
My family moved into the Lee Building, and occupied the top-floor
apartment on the left. There were six apartments altogether, three on
the right and three on the left of a wide central stairway. No one lived
in the apartment below us. Father's old friend from his "guerrilla"
days, Major Hector Shulwan rented the ground-floor apartment.
Shulwan might have had connections with the British Army Aid
Group in China. Shulwan, an English engineer who spoke fluent
Mandarin, was a confirmed bachelor and his only hobby was car
engines. During the day, he worked as Director of the Labour Depart-
ment in Hong Kong, and after work he would put on his overalls,
and we would always find him under his car. I was fascinated by this
tall man in the greasy overalls whom we called Uncle Shulwan.
On the right side of the building. Second Uncle and his family lived
on the top, Second Grandmother one floor below them. Fourth
Grandmother lived on the bottom floor. With the children of Second
Uncle, and with the frequent visits of many other cousins, we had lots
of playmates.
My brother, sister and I shared a large bedroom. At night, one of
the servants would set up her bed in our room to keep us company.
She would tell us stories from Chinese operas, and at times, these sto-
ries were so long that they would carry on for many nights. In the
summer, we all slept with mosquito nets over our beds. In the winter,
our beds were warmed by brass hot-water bottles wrapped with tow-
els and pinned with large safety pins.
Even though Father was considered well-off, and we had a nice
home, we had very little money. For the first and only time in her life,
Mother made some of our clothes. I remember Mother dressing quite
simply and wearing costume jewellery. The first toy I owned was a
doll my parents bought me for my first Christmas in Hong Kong in
After The War: The Society Changes 73
1945. I was four and a half years old. It remained my favourite toy
throughout my childhood.
Rationing and Shortages
The most important tasks the postwar Military Administration
faced were the repatriation and resettling of prisoners of war and
internees, the closure of the prison camps, and the demobilization of
the armed forces and auxiliary defence services. There was a great
shortage of government staff, and for the first time, local Chinese and
Portuguese personnel were given much more responsibility. The cre-
dentials they were able to establish during this period could not be
ignored by future Hong Kong governments.
The first years after the war were very difficult for everyone in
Hong Kong. The major concern was food, which was rationed. Sup-
plies were controlled by the United Nations. The rebuilding of a
healthy, growing community was constantly under threat from sheer
lack of food. On May 14, 1946, the government appointed Father as
Rice Controller for Hong Kong. The following week, Father held a
press conference to announce that since Hong Kong was allowed
only 20,000 tons of rice by the United Nations, which was half the
required amount for the population, flour and green peas would be
added to the ration.' By the end of the month, he protested to the
United Nations because of the limitation imposed on Hong Kong. By
September, the rice ration had to be reduced again, so biscuits and
additional flour were added. Throughout 1947, conditions remained
stable, but by the beginning of 1948, prices for flour and rice began
to increase. In order to control prices, Father allowed the sale of
cheaper rice imported from Thailand and Vietnam, and flour, which
met with public approval. On May 6, 1948, Father resigned his vol-
untary post, but was kept on as an advisor by the government.^
Father carried out his duty with such efficiency and correctness
that no one, not even family and close friends were given preference
with the rice ration coupons. ; I remember one incident in school
when one of the boys teased me and said, "Your father is the 'shit'
Controller." When I related this to him, Father said with a smile,
"Ask him what he eats."
74 Building Bridges
During Father's term as Rice Controller, he became very good
friends with Ma Luchen, an overseas Chinese in Thailand, frequent-
ly called the "rice king" of Southeast Asia. Since that time, the Ma
family has sent us bags of Thai rice, pomolos and mangoes every year.
The white flower mangoes from Thailand are, I believe, the best in
the world, but because they don't transport well they are not com-
mercially available. Yearly, my parents distributed these gifts to
family members. This practice was continued by Ma Luchen's son
after his father died, and it went on until my mother died in 1996.
During those early years, when there were shortages and small
industries had a difficult time, Father tried his best to help. Compa-
nies such as Yu Tat Chi, which manufactured candied ginger, and the
Garden Bakery, which needed sugar for baking, were grateful to
Father for arranging supplies of sugar/ I remember the beautiful gin-
ger jars and the wonderful candied ginger we used to have after
dinner. Garden Bakery sent my parents cakes on special occasions,
and they continued to do so, even after Father died. I saw the beau-
tiful Christmas cake sent from Garden Bakery to Mother in 1995, the
year before she died.
Another problem Hong Kong faced with the large increase in the
refugee population was the shortage of water. Hong Kong had, up to
that point, depended on rainwater, which was collected in reservoirs.
The water supply became inadequate, and water rationing started.
Depending on the time of year, water might be available for only a
few hours twice a week. Because of the lack of water pressure, those
who lived on the upper floors in high-rises might not get any water
from their taps at all. It was particularly desperate in the poorer sec-
tions in the city where people had to line up at public taps with
buckets and fights often broke out. The newspapers and radio sta-
tions reported many stories of woe. At least the wealthy could check
themselves into a hotel when they needed a good shower, because
there was no rationing for the hotels. I remember this time very well.
Our lives were consumed by this problem. My parents would tell us
when water was available and insisted that we be frugal with it. Our
household staff used to fill the bathtubs and all available containers
when the water was turned on.
After The War: The Society Changes 75
A large new reservoir was built at Tai Lam Chung in the New Ter-
ritories, but when it was finished, the government realized that it was
not big enough. The government could not keep up with the needs of
the increasing population.
Health Problems
Health was also a major government concern in postwar Hong
Kong. I remember the public-health nurses coming to the school to
give us typhoid and cholera injections. I often had painful reactions
to these, sometimes accompanied by a fever. We also had tuberculo-
sis tests and smallpox vaccinations, when we had to wear wire covers
over the vaccination area to prevent us from scratching. I dreaded
those "public-health nurse days."
With my usual inquisitiveness, I found out that Father gave blood
regularly to the Red Cross. I just happened to ask one day after
school because I thought he was home a little earlier than usual. He
never talked about it, but it was rather unusual for a Chinese to
donate blood in the years immediately after the war.
It's not possible to think of the postwar years without mentioning
de-worming. Father was quite aware of the state of hygiene in China
during the war, and in Hong Kong right after the war. Once a year on
a weekend during the cool months, all of us would starve ourselves
for one day, eating only very liquid plain rice congee. At the end of
the day, Father would give us worm medicine. The idea was that any
parasites living in our bodies would be hungry and would ingest the
medicine. The next morning, we would be given castor oil with
orange juice, a horrible mixture. Presumably, that would eliminate
the worms and the eggs from our bodies. Father never planned too
far ahead, because it had to be at his convenience. Our cousins
always hoped to avoid this procedure, even though they loved stay-
ing over at our place, but anyone who happened to be with us that
weekend would get the same treatment. Father impressed upon us
that if we allowed parasites to live in our bodies, all our nutrition
would be taken from us and we wouldn't grow. He was absolutely
right. I did have worms in my body and I saw them being expelled.
76 Building Bridges
Father also believed his children should be trained to have regular
bowel movements in the evening. So every night after dinner, the
three of us would troop into the washroom. My brother would sit on
the toilet, my sister on a tall spittoon, and I would be on a small spit-
toon. Often we just talked and did nothing.
When we bought our first launch in 1947, the Swan, one of the
crew members, Ah Gun, was scrawny and looked as though he had
been affected by parasites. Father treated him with worm medicine.
Over the years he worked for us, he actually grew taller and became
much healthier.
Some time in the late 1940s, my parents came to the realization
that my hearing was impaired. This was caused by my frequent ill-
nesses during the war, and subsequent ear infections. A friend of
Father's, Dr. Chan Yik Ping, was an eye, ear, nose and throat special-
ist, trained in Vienna around the same time Father was at Oxford.
Like many doctors who were licensed in China, Dr. Chan was able to
work only for the Hong Kong government health service,' and not
allowed to have his own practice. However, my parents had great
respect for his ability and asked him about my hearing loss. He diag-
nosed a perforated eardrum in my left ear. After school on a regular
basis I was taken to see him by Father, who always came with me
because he was so anxious and concerned. Dr. Chan inserted a thin
tissue in place of my eardrum, and applied an ointment to encourage
regrowth. Eventually, my eardrum did grow back, but I still notice a
difference between my right and left ears.
The Refugee Families
My first personal experience with what was happening in China
was when we suddenly had visitors. Sing Sheng" and Dorothy Chu,
who was related to the Tao family we stayed with in Chongqing,
arrived on the first day of Chinese New Year 1947. In January, the two
had left Shanghai for Hong Kong to get visas to go to the United
States. The plane in which they were travelling was diverted to Mani-
la because of stormy weather. Then two of the four engines caught fire
After The War: The Society Changes 77
and the pilot ditched the plane in the China Sea. Seven of the thirty-
six passengers died and the survivors stayed afloat in two rubber rafts
for thirty hours until they were rescued by an American ship. After
being hospitalized for two weeks, Sing Sheng and Dorothy finally
arrived in Hong Kong and were welcomed by my parents/ They
stayed for about a month, in the apartment below, and had all their
meals with us, while they waited for their visas. I was six years old at
the time, and just loved hearing their stories. After they obtained their
visas, they returned to Shanghai to prepare to go to the United States.
Between 1948 and 1949, friends and relatives who came out from
China stayed in the Lee Building. I am not sure whether it was
because of a shortage of rental accommodations or because it was a
temporary measure. At one time there were three families living in
the same apartment below us. As children, we thought it was won-
derful to have even more playmates, but I was beginning to realize the
seriousness of the political upheaval in China by listening to the
adults talk. I knew that the new playmates were only there tem-
porarily and I was quite aware of the overcrowded conditions our
guests were living in. Knowing that people had to leave their homes
was not a comforting thought.
The apartment was divided into three sections for the three fami-
lies. One of them was the family of Mother's older sister Pearl. Aunt
Pearl left Shanghai with her six children while her husband, C.C.
Kwong, stayed behind. Uncle C.C. was a highly qualified engineer
who felt that he could stay in China to help the country. By 1950, he
believed that the political situation was settling down, and he came
out to Hong Kong to take his family back to Shanghai. However, they
left behind their eldest son, Joseph, with us because he was of con-
scription age, and they did not want him to be sent to Korea to be
"cannon fodder," now that the Korean War was on. Within two
years, their other children escaped back to Hong Kong, one by one.
The Chans were another family ― husband, wife and four chil-
dren. Lucy Chan, a friend since the 1920s, was the lawyer mentioned
earlier, who trained in England at the same time Father studied there.
Mr. Chan was the son of an important official in China. What I
78 Building Bridges
remember most was the fact that Mrs. Chan, besides being a skilled
lawyer, could knit a sweater in a day. She could even knit while she
was having an afternoon rest.
The third family was Father's former employer in Guangzhou,
Liu Jiwen, his wife and their children. Mrs. Liu, a beautiful and
serene lady, was a gifted painter. During their stay with us, every
day after school I would go downstairs and watch her paint.
Because she knew I was so interested, she showed me how to grind
traditional Chinese colours, and how to use Chinese brushes. Soon,
I was sitting next to her at her table and she was teaching me Chi-
nese painting. Mrs. Liu told Mother that I had artistic talent, and
should be given painting lessons.
In 1949, the Chinese Communist Party formed the government of
the Peoples' Republic of China, and the Nationalists of the Republic
of China under Chiang Kaishek retreated to Taiwan.
Housing Problems
Father played a major role in helping the people of Hong Kong
both privately and through the government. In 1946, Father was
made a Justice of the Peace (JP). One of his duties was that of acting
as a judge in the JP court, presiding over cases of minor infractions,
such as hawkers who set up their stands where they were not allowed
to by law. In appreciation of Father's service to the community, par-
ticularly as the Rice Controller for Hong Kong, the British
government awarded him the OBE in 1949.
In 1953, Father became a member of the Urban Council. He imme-
diately spoke out publicly on the lack of affordable housing. He
encouraged large companies to work with the government to build
housing for their employees by providing affordable mortgages. He
knew that this would greatly improve the relationship between
employers and employees. At the same time, he also brought up the
subject of the lack of understanding by the general public about pub-
lic health issues and suggested that the government produce
brochures explaining the problems.
After The War: The Society Changes 79
The crisis in housing caused severe health problems. The poor lived
in shacks or in the open. Others paid landlords to be allowed to build
shacks on top of buildings. There were no toilets or running water.
On Christmas Day 1953 there was a terrible fire in an area filled
with squatters, and 53,000 people were hurt. The government final-
ly realized that a third of the population of Hong Kong was made up
of refugees who had nowhere else to go. Something had to be done
to integrate them into the community. From then on, the Hong Kong
government embarked on an ambitious resettlement program to pro-
vide safer housing at minimal cost. This also helped to clear the land
occupied by the squatters for industrial and commercial develop-
ments. Despite the speed with which public housing was built, the
squatter population grew even faster.
In 1961, as an unofficial member of the Legislative Council, Father
complained that the government was working too slowly. It had
promised to move 75,000 people into public housing in 1959.
According to Father's information, as of February 1961， only 32,432
had been moved. He urged the government to cut the red tape to
speed up the process, giving priority to those earning less than $300
a month.'"
It took until the 1980s to solve the problems of housing. 丁 he
shacks on the hillside gradually disappeared and were replaced by
high-rise public housing. The majority of these refugees became the
backbone of Hong Kong's industrialization.
Refugees and Industry
During the Korean War of 1950 to 1953, the United Nations
placed an embargo on China, dealing a fatal blow to the entrepot
trade in Hong Kong. Fortunately for Hong Kong, some of the
refugees brought with them not only money but industrial and tech-
nological know-how. According to one estimate, several billion Hong
Kong dollars came with the immigrants during this period. Between
1947 and 1949, more than two hundred Shanghai enterprises
transferred their registration to Hong Kong.
80 Building Bridges
Industrialists arriving from northeastern China provided a boost to
local industries, and were in turn aided by the established interna-
tional trading networks in Hong Kong." Because of its lack of natural
resources, Hong Kong's most valuable resource was its manpower,
much of it including the refugee population and their knowledge and
skills. Hong Kong's textile industry originated with these new
arrivals. The opening of factories helped to provide jobs for the mass-
es. By the beginning of the 1950s, "Made in Hong Kong" labels
began to appear on many manufactured goods, a change from the
late 1940s, when "Made in Japan" labels were common. At the same
time, there was a growing need for skill and knowledge so that the
Colony could become competitive internationally.
As more and more factories were built, important changes in social
structures occurred. The traditional Chinese family with live-in Chi-
nese female servants gradually declined. Many of these servants were
women who originally came from the silk districts of the Pearl River
Delta and had worked in the silk industries near their home villages
until the Great Depression. When their factories collapsed, they
moved to Guangzhou (Canton), Macao and Hong Kong. Some were
women who had decided they were not going to get married, others
were widows who had chosen not to remarry. Since they were illiter-
ate, their only alternative was to work as household servants. They
formed a sisterhood, zei mid, and depended on one another for moral
and sometimes financial support. They were known as women who
put their hair up, saw hai, meaning they would never marry. They
braided their hair in the back in one thick braid, and it was never cut.
The older women sometimes wore their hair in a bun. I was always
fascinated by the amount of hair these servants had, and loved watch-
ing them going through the ritual of hair washing, using a certain
type of wood shaving, pao faT, which they bought from the market,
and which added a lovely sheen to the hair.
With the opening of more and more factories in Hong Kong, many
unskilled jobs were available, and these were filled by the younger ser-
vants. The older ones remained with the families they had been with
for years. Gradually, the factories absorbed all the unskilled labour in
Hong Kong, and no Chinese household servants were available.
After The War: Thf, Society Changes 81
Working in a factory meant being able to have one's own home and
family. Government subsidized housing had helped greatly in this
respect and the standard of living for the majority improved. The posi-
tions of household servants were gradually filled by Filipino maids,
and later, maids from Thailand brought by employment agencies into
Hong Kong. By the 1970s, live-in household help was almost entirely
from other Southeast Asian countries.
As for me, the real change in Hong Kong began when we started to
hear the Shanghai dialect spoken in public, and noticed the odour of
"smelly" tofu, a popular Shanghai dish. We were frequently visited by
the "Shanghai Woman," a gem agent who, with private references,
went to wealthy homes to sell jewels smuggled out of China by
refugees. 丁 he rich smuggled whatever they could out of China into
Hong Kong, and overnight there was an abundance of jewels available
for sale, the proceeds of which, I was told, were used to finance fac-
tories and various other businesses. For the next few years, the
"Shanghai Woman" would call on Mother whenever she had some-
thing special. She was a chubby lady who wore a plain loose
cheongsam, inside which was an undergarment full of secret pockets.
I used to watch in great fascination as she unbuttoned her cheongsam,
and from each secret pocket of her undergarment came the most beau-
tiful pieces of jewellery. I always hoped she would come when I was
home after school, and sometimes I was lucky. With such valuables on
her person, I often wondered about her safety, but I didn't think it was
my place to ask.
Refugees and Education
Father became involved with grass-root organizations, such as the
Szeyup Business Association (an association of people from the area of
our ancestral village in China), Wan Chai Kaifong Benevolent Associ-
ation (a community organization to help the needy), Tung Wah
Hospital (a hospital for the poor), Po Leung Kuk (for the protection of
women and children) and many others. He spent a great deal of time
organizing donations of warm clothing, and helped to set up free med-
ical and dental clinics, free primary schools and also donations of free
82 Building Bridges
coffins, which was very important to the Chinese. As an education
enthusiast, he was often invited to different schools for prize-giving
days or for new school openings. Many of these were Chinese-lan-
guage middle schools catering to the refugee population that needed
someone to raise their profile. Throughout his life, Father always had
time for those who needed him.
Schools in postwar Hong Kong were in a state of disarray. Many
of the buildings were either destroyed or so badly damaged that they
could not be used. With the increasing number of people moving
into Hong Kong from China,'' there was constantly a shortage of
schools. Classes were held in any available building. Between 1946
and 1948, 1 changed school four times. Two of the four schools soon
ceased to exist.
In the 1950s Rev. R.O. Hall, Bishop of Hong Kong, set up Work-
ers' Schools for refugee children. The Colonial government suspected
these schools of communist infiltration" and anti-British indoctrina-
tion and closed them down, and in some cases, deported the
teachers." The Education Ordinance of 1953 and its subsidiary reg-
ulations prohibited any kind of political activity in schools, including
discussions of contemporary Chinese politics or of colonialism.
Improvisations such as three-sessional schools had to be adopted
by the government. This meant that three sessions of school were
held in the same building, morning, afternoon and evening, each with
its own set of teachers and students. In 1952, my older brother,
Richard, and my sister, Deanna, were sent to school in England. My
younger brother, Christopher, and I attended St. Paul's Co-educa-
tional College. We were very glad to be in the morning session, which
started at eight o'clock.
I subsequently learnt that, because of food shortages and the dis-
organization of the schools in Hong Kong, the Poy family decided to
stay in Canada where conditions were much better.
'6
The Magical Years
From the end of the war to the early 1950s, my family lived in the
Lee Building. Those were magical years for me. There were so
many children living in the same building that we were never short of
playmates. I loved the freedom to play in the garden, swinging on tree
branches, picking fruit, and chasing chickens in the chicken coop. I
constantly had scraped knees and my legs were dotted with mosqui-
to bites. I loved the beautiful fragrance of the flowering trees and
bushes. Mother used to pick the flowers to put in her hair. Whenev-
er I hear the sound of heat bugs buzzing now, or smell the fragrance
of Chinese jasmine, I am reminded of my childhood in our garden, a
carefree time, full of fun.
We built a little "club" house with pieces of boards. We had small
wooden benches and stools, and the most important item was a little
coal burner. Every Saturday night, all the children got together to tell
stories and roast sweet potatoes on the burner. I remember once
Grandmother had her cook make soya sauce chicken and bring it to
us in the club house. My sister had told Grandmother that she came
first in class, and we deserved something for our Saturday night club.
Being the youngest in the group, I was mainly a listener and observer.
We were allowed to stay up as late as we liked. I was so pleased that
I was allowed to join this group even though I was always frightened
by the ghost stories the older children told. At the end of the evening,
without fail, everyone ran upstairs calling out, "Ghosts chasing us!" I
was always the last to reach the top of the stairs because I couldn't run
as fast as the others.
83
84 Building Bridges
One night, I woke up and saw a white shadow with long hair mov-
ing from our bedroom to the bathroom. The first thought that came
to mind was what Mother had said: no one had died in the Lee Build-
ing during the war. I thought, if there was no violent death in the
house, we would not be harmed.
Another night, I woke up and saw a white shadowy female figure
with long hair standing between my bed and my sister s bed. I
thought it had to be the servant, but when I sat up in bed to check
and saw her fast asleep, I froze. I couldn't even cry out. The white fig-
ure moved closer and closer, then turned towards my sister's bed and
fingered the mosquito net with her long nails. I kept saying to myself
that she was not going to hurt us since we had never hurt anyone,
then I passed out. The next morning, I asked the servant whether she
had gotten up in the middle of the night to adjust my sister's mos-
quito net, and she said no. I never told my parents about this because
I didn't want to worry them.
To this day, I can't explain what I saw, but I remember those
images very clearly.
Even though we lived on the side of a hill and were surrounded by
trees full of birds, Father loved having birds in our home. We had a
parrot and a couple of canaries. Father would give the canaries water,
bird seed and dried squid cartilage. The cages hung in our balcony,
and sometimes, wild canaries were attracted by them. Father enjoyed
hearing them sing, especially early in the morning. Our cook also
liked to feed the blackbirds that flew to the window of her kitchen in
the back.
There were a lot of hungry people in Hong Kong during the post-
war years. Sometimes our cook would give them leftover food from
our kitchen.
Very early one morning, I was awakened by the sound of Father
shouting from the window. When I went to the window to see what
was happening, I saw a man carrying two chickens, one under each
arm, running down the slope from the Lee Building towards Wan
Chai. Apparently, he had climbed into our garden, and got into our
chicken coop. Father saw him just as he was getting away.
The Magical Years 85
Those were the days when we were visited quite regularly by men
who purchased recyclable and reusable cans and bottles. These men
carried on their shoulders bamboo poles strung with huge baskets on
each side. This was the postwar Hong Kong way of recycling.
Father was an early riser, unlike Mother, who liked to sleep in, so
we always had breakfast with him. The first things he put in front of
us were cod-liver oil, a brown thick liquid that we took with a table-
spoon, as well as vitamin C, and calcium. He made sure we had a full
breakfast. He retained the English habit of having bacon and eggs, or
kippered herring. I used to like a piece of pan-fried fish if the cook
could get it in the market early enough.
Father was always in a good mood in the morning. That was his
best time of the day. He liked to drive us to school even though school
in Hong Kong could start as early as eight o'clock in the morning. He
liked to get to the office before everyone else, including the office boy.
I asked him once why he didn't have the chauffeur drive us, and he
said, "I don't want Ah Muk to have to get up so early since he lives in
Kowloon. He can get the car from me at the office, and come back to
drive Mommy." But I actually think he liked driving us to school.
My childhood image of Father was that of an old-fashioned, stern
man on whom we could always depend, and one who commanded a
great deal of respect. I was a quiet child who listened and absorbed
everything around me. I don't believe Father knew how much I
admired him. I was but a few years old when I realized that I was as
strong-willed as he was, a quality he came to accept in me. I remember
an incident when I was about five years old when he insisted that I
should finish my lunch. I was not hungry and I refused. Since I was not
allowed to leave the table until I finished, I sat there for hours until he
relented. Ever since then, he knew I always made my own decisions.
As a child, I would rather listen than talk. We usually spoke Can-
tonese at home, but during dinner time, my parents always spoke
English to each other so that the servant would not understand what
they were saying. In order for me to understand what was said, I had
to learn very quickly. That was how I learnt English, by listening. I
could understand the language before I could speak it.
86 Building Bridges
It was also around this time that I was made aware that I was an
inquisitive child, for Mother complained that if she told me about a
person, I would always want to know everything, including what the
person's intestines look like.
In 1947, since my sister was a boarder at the Diocesan Girls'
School and thrived there, my parents decided that they were going to
enroll me as well. My stay didn't last very long. Not only did I have
nightmares, I also cried every Sunday afternoon when it was time to
go back to school for the week. My parents finally gave up and
enrolled me in Grade Three at St. Paul's Co-educational College,
which was a day school.
I used to have to fill in forms at school. At first I would write
"engineer" under Father's occupation. But then I thought, it couldn't
be right, because he seemed to do so many different things, and I
knew he didn't make a living being an engineer. I decided to ask him
one day what I should put as "father's occupation." He was involved
with so many businesses that he took a minute to think, and then
said, "Just put director of companies."
In the summer, we used to go swimming in South Bay, using the
Lee family's swimming shack for changing. Our car was usually dri-
ven by our chauffeur, Ah Muk, but Father liked to drive us to school
himself during the week and to swim on the weekends. The summers
were so hot and humid that we used to develop boils on our skin, but
Father told us that the sea water was very good for our boils. When-
ever we went to South Bay, the winding roads reminded me of the
rides on top of the Bank of China transport trucks, and invariably, I
would be carsick, and Father had to make frequent stops.
One day, while we were swimming in South Bay, Father asked me
whether I would like to have our own house in that part of the island,
and I was just delighted. However, what worried him was the isola-
tion and the lack of public security during those years in Hong Kong
and he changed his mind.
In 1946, I could sense something new was going to happen to our
family. In May 1947, my younger brother, Christopher, was born.
The Magical Years 87
Launching as Recreation
Father believed in fresh air and sunshine. In 1947, as soon as he
could afford it, he bought a launch, the Swan. It was the first of four
he owned in his lifetime. The other three were the Mayflower, the
Fortima and the Atalanta. Boating became a part of our lives, and I
loved it. On weekends Father would take us out on our launch, and
sometimes we would have dinner in one of the floating restaurants in
Aberdeen. Later Aberdeen Harbour became so polluted that Father
would not permit us to eat in any cf the restaurants there.
We never stayed overnight on the launch in the outer islands,
because Father said there were pirates around Hong Kong. However,
we begged and begged, and one day he agreed. We stayed overnight
in the typhoon shelter in Causeway Bay. Our sailors hung a light over
the water for us that night, and we caught quite a few cuttlefish to
bring back to Mother, who was home with the new baby.
We used to have spectacular sunsets in Hong Kong, particularly in
the summer. That was before the Colony became overcrowded, and
the atmosphere was full of pollution. I always observed the sunsets
when we were on the water and tried to remember the colours and
the shapes of the clouds. Because I was very young, often, at the end
of a long day on the launch, I would fall asleep before we got home.
Father would carry me in and tuck me in bed. 丁 he next morning
when I got up, I would get out my water-colours and paint the sun-
set from the night before. My parents loved my paintings and my
appreciation of the beauty of nature.
Spending time on the launch was the only recreation Father
enjoyed. Some of our best moments were spent on our launch, out on
the water, or on one of the off-islands in Hong Kong, away from the
hustle and bustle of the city. It was also the time when the whole fam-
ily was together, often joined by relatives or school friends. My
parents rarely used the launch for entertaining, especially when we
were young, because it was reserved for the family.
Father was one of the very first people in Hong Kong to own a
launch, so we were able to go to many unspoiled beaches. Those
88 Building Bridges
were the days when the water was clear, and the beaches were so
clean that we could dig clams to bring home to eat. We could observe
sea life not normally accessible to city dwellers. I touched a baby
octopus, watched a baby sole flapping in shallow water, saw sea-
horses swim near our launch, and caught transparent shrimps with
a handkerchief. We learnt the names and habits of many sea crea-
tures from our crew, all of whom were Tankar people, who lived
their whole lives on boats.
Being a public-spirited person, Father would clean the beaches of
broken bottles and sharp rocks with the help of our crew. We were
never asked to help because he wanted us to have as much time to
play as possible. I taught myself to swim in shallow water. Because of
my perforated eardrum, my head had to stay above water, in order to
avoid an ear infection. I used to love waiting for low tide because that
was when I would find interesting sea creatures that were normally
under water. Even now, whenever we go to the seashore, I wait for
low tide.
Once we docked in a bay where there were many jellyfish. They
had claws that looked like chicken claws and poison which was haz-
ardous to people. Father asked the crew to scoop up as many as they
could and put them on the beach, where they melted in the sun and
turned to water.
In the summer, because of the heat, we always went out in the after-
noon for high tea and sometimes for dinner as well, returning to Hong
Kong harbour when all the lights were reflected on the water. I can
still feel the sea breezes on my face and smell the salty air. Those were
special moments that I will always treasure. The harbour is no longer
the way it was. Land reclamation has made it narrow and it is crowd-
ed with busy boat traffic.
In the winter, we would go out on the launch in the morning and
have a picnic lunch. After lunch and a short rest, Father would hike
with us on the islands. We saw rather primitive burial plots and jars
where descendants collected the bones of their ancestors. We saw
fields of sweet potatoes, and crumbling buildings that had been
there for hundreds of years when these islands were first inhabited
by fishermen, farmers and those who worked in the plantations of
The Magical Years 89
fragrant wood which was exported to mainland China. It was fas-
cinating for me to see how the villagers lived. Their lives had not
changed for generations, little touched by the progress in Hong
Kong. We would always return by late afternoon before it got too
cold. Even today, I like going to the off-islands to trek across the
hills when we visit in the winter.
Throughout the year, when we were on one of the islands, we
would see fishing boats coming back to shore late in the day. Once
we were on the beach and a fisherman asked Father whether he want-
ed to buy some scallops shaped like half-open fans. He then opened
one, and to my surprise, there were little pearls in it. The fisherman
told us that they scraped these from the bottom of the ocean for the
pearls as much as for the flesh of the scallops. I was disappointed
Father didn't buy any.
We loved fishing with fishing-lines and often caught many colour-
ful fish. My parents did not participate. We asked our crew many
questions about the different types of fish we caught and learned a lot
about marine life. At times a fishing boat would come up to our
launch to sell fresh fish. From the hold in their boat where we could
see many colourful fish swimming, my parents would choose one or
two that we would take home to cook for dinner.
By the middle of the 1950s, we had our third launch, For tuna. It
was my favourite because it was so big that we were able to have
large picnics with our friends and cousins, uncles and aunts. I was the
most gregarious of the four children and I always enjoyed these out-
ings. We kept our crew busy looking after us. They would watch over
those who were swimming to warn us in case a jellyfish surfaced.
Once, a cousin was touched by the yellow tentacles of a blue jellyfish
just as he was climbing up the swim ladder. He had to be taken to the
hospital immediately.
The Lee Building and the Big House
Out of our living-room window in the Lee Building, we had a
beautiful view of the hill and waterfalls. One of the waterfalls flowed
into a rock formation that resembled a pool, where in summer,
90 Building Bridges
children would swim and play. We were not allowed to go there, but
I loved watching them.
We had many different fruit trees in our garden, such as papaya,
logan, guava, loquat, mango, wongpei and leichee, all planted by
Grandfather. As children, we loved picking fruit off the trees, or in the
case of papaya, because the trees were usually too high and too straight
to climb, we would knock a ripe papaya off the tree with a stick, and
catch it in an old raincoat. We would open it up and eat it right there
in the garden. We played on the swing and the slide, we rode our bicy-
cles around the garden, and walked on stilts that Second Uncle had
made for us. We caught tadpoles in the fish ponds and the fountains,
and we watched the goldfish swim. The older children would play bas-
ketball in the basketball court.
Occasionally, we also went to the Big House to see Grandmother,
who always looked solemn and always sat in the same chair. We would
sometimes have a chat with the Sikh watchman in the guard house,
Nam Singh, who would show us the snakes he caught. In the evening,
when the servants came looking for us to have our baths, we would
hide in the artificial caves Grandfather had built in the garden.
We often dropped in on Second Grandmother and Fourth Grand-
mother, and visited our uncles and aunts since we all lived so close
together. In the Big House, we had our altar to our ancestors, to whom
we paid our respect on special occasions. Second Grandmother and
Fourth Grandmother had altars to Buddha in their prayer rooms. We
were often at Second Grandmother's because she was Father's own moth-
er. I was fascinated by her serenity and her faith. I liked to watch her
smoke her water-pipe, making a gurgling sound and blowing puffs of
smoke. At a set time every morning and every afternoon, she would go
into her prayer room, light the incense, put on her coarse brown prayer
robe and kneel in front of the altar to Buddha with her prayer beads in
her hands. She would then recite her prayers and move the beads with
her fingers as if counting them. She was always so entranced that she
wouldn't notice us going in and out making faces behind her back.
Second Grandmother was thankful for what life had given her and
I never once heard her complain about anything. She always spoke of
Grandfather with great respect, and she would go out of her way to
The Magical Years 91
have harmony in the family. She was a small woman with a strong
and resilient character which gained her respect in the family. After
Grandmother died, Second Grandmother became the matriarch in
the Lee family.
On Father's birthday according to the Chinese calendar, Second
Grandmother always made a village dish of duck cooked with taro,
because that had been Father's favourite childhood dish. She would
not let the servants make it, but always made it herself in the old Chi-
nese fashion, cooking it slowly on a stove in the garden with dry
straws. After she moved from the Lee Building to Caroline Mansion
in the 1950s, she had to do this in a more modern kitchen.
My parents entertained a great deal. With Father's involvement
with the Hong Kong government and with business, Mother was
kept very busy being a hostess. In 1948 and 1949, Father was Hong
Kong's delegate at the 4th and 5th Sessions of the Economic Com-
mission for Asia and the Far East. By the beginning of the 1950s, he
was on many government commissions, as well as being a member of
the Urban Council. For as long as we lived in the Lee Building, they
entertained in the Big House. I remember my parents getting dressed
up and walking down through the garden. These were catered par-
ties, but Mother had to supervise the menus, the flowers, the guest
lists and the seating. My parents' parties were known to start early
and end early. Father was famous for saying, "When the guests leave,
the host will regain tranquillity."
Until the beginning of the 1950s, the Big House was the focal point
of our lives. All family gatherings, Christmas parties and wedding
parties were held in the main hall. The first day of Chinese New Year,
we would all put on our padded cheongsams, little gold rings and
bracelets, and gather at the Big House to pay our respects to Grand-
mother. On the second day, wearing the same dresses, we would go
over to the Wong Grandparents to pay our respects. Every dress I had
as a child was red or pink, because these are good-luck colours for
the Chinese. I got so sick of red and pink that it took me almost forty
years to wear pink again. I still can't wear red.
The empty apartment below us in the Lee Building was occasion-
ally occupied by my Grandmother Wong when she visited us. Our
92 Building Bridges
Wong Grandparents lived in Kowloon, and crossing the harbour was
not so convenient then. One day, when I came home from school,
Grandmother Wong had just returned from the Lee Theatre after see-
ing a war movie starring Errol Flynn. She had a headache and asked
one of the servants to get her an ice bag. By the time the servant
brought it, she had passed away. She had had a stroke, although she
was only in her sixties. It was my first encounter with death in the
family. I always remember her as a beautiful and gentle person.
Servants and Hawkers
It was the custom at that time for well-to-do families to have many
servants — a cook, a laundry amah, a baby amah, and one or two
servants for general housework, besides gardeners and a chauffeur.
Second Grandmother also had a muitsai (meaning "little girl") in her
household. In China, when a father was poor and had no way of sup-
porting his children, he would give away his young daughter to a
wealthy household to become a muitsai. In keeping with old Chinese
tradition, money was often paid to the parents. Sons were never given
away. The household that took in a muitsai was supposed to have her
as a general helper, and in return, she got her board and lodging, and
learned household work. 丁 his was not always the case, and there
were frequent abuses of the system. When a muitsai grew up, it was
the duty of the family to marry her off. In my Second Grandmother's
case, her muitsai was her masseuse, who also performed light house-
hold chores.
Even though Father was against the muitsai system, he did not
interfere until after the war. Then he told his mother that her muitsai
had to go. Whether Second Grandmother married her off, I really
don't know, but I suspect she was sent back home, because I remem-
ber her being a rather young girl. In my own home, no one ever
worked without pay, so I did not know about this custom. I merely
thought the servant was called muitsai because she was so young.
One day after school, I met a muitsai of friends of my parents
who came to our home to say goodbye, because she was to be mar-
ried to someone in the United States. She was telling Mother about
The Magical Years 93
the English lessons she was taking in preparation for the journey.
By listening, I began to learn more about the custom of muitsai.
Father was always concerned about the well-being of others, and
he always had time to help people from all walks of life. What I
noticed everyday was his consideration for our servants. Never was
there an unkind word. He always helped them to improve their lives,
even though it meant that we would lose them from our service.
We had a servant called Ah Nam, who was hired to look after my
baby brother, Christopher. One day she was spitting blood and was
so distraught she wanted to kill herself. Mother took her to the doc-
tor's and found out that she had tuberculosis. She was hospitalized
and went through lengthy treatment which was paid for by Father.
She never worked as a servant again, but when she was better, she got
married and had a family. When Caroline Mansion was built on Yun
Ping Road in the early 1950s, she went to see Father because she
wanted to have a small retail business. Father gave her a space, a
stairwell that had a lot of walk-by traffic, to sell slippers and maga-
zines. She did well and prospered. She always insisted on giving all of
us her merchandise, but because she wouldn't take any money, we
told her that we didn't read the type of magazines she sold. She insist-
ed, however, that we could always use slippers, and she would press
these into our hands. The last time I saw her was when Mother
moved from Tower Court after Father died. Tower Court was just a
few steps from Caroline Mansion where Ah Nam had her stand.
After we moved into Embassy Court in 1951, we had a house boy
called Ah Mun who Father thought was too smart to remain in that
position. Father felt that he should have an education to better him-
self, so he sent him to night school to learn English, and later to learn
drafting. Often, dinner parties were planned around Ah Mun's school
examinations. He sometimes had to miss a class if my parents really
needed him to help serve. I remember him looking very smart dressed
for school in a jacket and tie given to him by Father. Ah Mun some-
times practised his English by reading Mother's recipe books, and he
learned to bake a very good orange chiffon cake. Once Ah Mun
completed his drafting course, he left our home to seek better
employment.
94 Building Bridges
On one of our trips back to Hong Kong in the late 1960s, I met the
new cook, Ah Wu. She had been a cleaner at Tower Court, the build-
ing we lived in. Father noticed that she was a hard worker, and he
offered her a job in our home so that she could learn cooking. Ah Wu
stayed with us for many years, and she is like family to me as well as
our children. Over the years, Father helped her and her husband buy
an apartment so that they would have security. Ah Wu's employment
had interruptions because of differences with Mother, but she always
came back. In fact, after Father died, and after she retired, out of
gratitude to Father, she came back to help Mother near the end of
Mother's life. The last time I saw her was at Mother's memorial ser-
vice in October 1996.
Despite the fact that Father was considered a wealthy man, he
never carried more than a few dollars in his pocket. His secretary in
the 1970s and early 1980s, Anna, said that it would be a waste of
time picking his pocket. This could sometimes be an inconvenience.
Anna told me of an incident when Father saw a street hawker in
front of one of our office buildings, One Hysan Avenue. He wanted
to buy some pears from the man but didn't have enough money on
him, so he went upstairs to his office, and asked Anna to buy some
for him. Anna sent an office boy, who said to the hawker, "The big
boss, Mr. Lee, sends me." The hawker, frightened because he should
not have been selling there, said, "I'm leaving right away." When
the office boy assured him that Mr. Lee only wanted to buy some
pears, the hawker immediately offered them for free. It was Father's
policy never to accept anything for free, so the office boy paid ten
dollars. But instead of the usual eight pears for ten dollars, the
hawker gave him twenty pears.' Father, totally unaware of the price
of pears, thought it a good deal.
Embassy Court
By the beginning of the 1950s, all the refugee families who stayed
with us in the Lee Building had gone their own way, and my parents
were planning our new home in Embassy Court, on Hysan Avenue,
which was the first high-rise owned by the Lee family.
The Magical Years 95
I still remember the architectural plans Father brought home.
These were drawings of the two-level penthouse we were going to live
in, with the entire roof as our garden. Mother was very much
involved in the planning and the decor. My parents would spend time
in the side streets of Hong Kong looking for interesting artifacts and
antiques. It was an exciting time for them. From then on, they would
be able to entertain at home instead of in the Big House.
The building was designed with large water-storage tanks on the
roof, so that when water was available, it would be piped to the tanks
first in order that no one in the building would suffer from the lack
of water pressure. This type of design continued with our subsequent
buildings. I was aware of Father's concern, not only for us, but for all
the tenants. Father had always been proud of all our buildings
because they were so well built that they would never budge when
typhoons hit Hong Kong, unlike many other high-rises that used to
collapse with high winds or torrential rains.
After we moved to Embassy Court, Father continued to drive us to
school every morning. Being a practical person, he liked to give rides
to as many students as possible. A friend of mine, Miranda, who lived
near us, always got a ride just outside her home. The next person we
picked up was Ah Woon, who would be waiting for us outside the
Big House. The daughter of Grandmother's cook, she was a student
at Sacred Heart School.
My life changed dramatically after our move. I not only lost the
garden to play in, I actually became a serious student. Like most stu-
dents in Hong Kong, I had a tutor. Miss Chan would come after
school and teach me mathematics. I had a system worked out to get
a high average. It was almost impossible to get a grade higher than
80 per cent in any subject except mathematics, because of the way
examinations were marked. So the only way was to try to get a 100
per cent in all three mathematics subjects.
The first year I entered secondary school I came first in a class of
forty students. Actually I think Miss Chan should have been given the
credit. When Mother heard the news from my principal, Miss Bobby
Kotewall, she was so excited she couldn't sleep. It was generally
known that St. Paul's Co-educational College had high academic
96 Building Bridges
standards, and to come first was extremely difficult. One of my teach-
ers said to me the following year, "For someone with your family
background, I don't understand why you work so hard!" People have
been saying that to me ever since.
My parents were so pleased that they gave a luncheon for all my
teachers. Subsequently, my art teacher presented my parents with a
large Chinese painting he had done of peach blossoms, which com-
plemented the pale blue colour of our dining room. This painting was
treasured by my parents and remained hanging in their dining room
until Mother passed away.
Once we moved into Embassy Court, I started Chinese painting
lessons with a well-known artist, Boa Siu Yao, who lived not far from
us. I used to walk there after school, and during the summer, I went
every morning. I also took piano lessons and singing lessons. The
singing lessons only lasted about a year because I soon found out that
my voice was not very strong, even though I love singing. Painting
was still my favourite extracurricular activity. I was kept so busy in
my early teens that I wasn't even interested in going out. I had a
painting table in my bedroom, quite separate from my desk so that
my paints and paper never had to be put away. In the 1970s Father
came across some of my paintings and sent them to me in Toronto.
The first couple of years after we moved into Embassy Court,
Richard and I used to ride our bicycles to the South China Stadium
after school or on weekends to fly kites. I think I was able to fly a kite
properly only once and found it frustrating. In late summer we made
nets to catch huge dragonflies in the partially flattened ground of The
Lee Gardens right opposite us. One Chinese New Year, Richard put
firecrackers in glass bottles that exploded like bombs.
In order for the Lee family to develop the land at The Lee Gardens,
the hill had to be levelled. During the few years we lived in Embassy
Court, I saw the hill situated on the other side of Hysan Avenue
removed right before my eyes. Day after day, the hill became lower. I
saw men and women carrying heavy loads of rocks and soil from the
hill to the trucks, which were then driven to a dump site. Occasion-
ally, I would hear dynamite going off to break up the rocks. During
that process, beautiful rock crystals were found. Father treasured
The Magical Years 97
these, and had carved wood stands made for some of the large pieces.
He kept some himself and gave some away.
Many interesting events occurred during the excavation of The
Lee Gardens. A Goddess of Mercy or Guanyin statue was found
buried in the hill. It was said that anyone who dared to remove it
would become ill. Work was halted and monks and nuns were
brought to the site to chant and pray. It was decided that they were
the only people who could remove the Goddess of Mercy. An auspi-
cious date was set, and with all the proper respect paid to the
Goddess, the statue was removed ceremoniously to be housed in one
of the Buddhist temples in the New Territories. Work on the levelling
of the hill was then resumed.
During the excavation, a large iron bell was unearthed, dating
back to over two hundred years. It had been donated by the Lo fam-
ily to a temple on the hill in gratitude for their good fortune.
"Favourable weather" was inscribed on the bell, referring to the Lo
family as farmers. This was a treasure Father was very proud of. He
had a beautiful large carved wood frame made to hold this bell which
weighed tons. It became his prized show-piece in our living room.
Living in Embassy Court meant that I got to see how my parents
entertained. The upper level of the penthouse was for entertaining,
and the bedrooms were all downstairs. Whenever my parents enter-
tained, they always had a Chinese restaurant do the catering.
Catering in those days meant moving all the equipment to our enter-
taining kitchen upstairs (for everyday, our cook used the kitchen
downstairs), and everything would be cooked there. After school, I
liked to see what type of food was being served. If winter melon soup
was to be one of the courses on the menu, the vegetables in it would
be cut in the most beautiful stylized forms of birds, butterflies or fish.
I would also check Mother's floral decorations and decide which one
I was going to paint the next day. Just before I went to bed, I would
look at the party from behind the Chinese screen. I loved the glitter
of the silver candelabras and the crystal, the flickering candlelight and
the sound of talk and laughter. Mother always used the most beauti-
ful Chinese crocheted tablecloths with matching napkins. If the party
was Chinese style, there would be three tables of eight. If it was a
98 Building Bridges
European-style dinner (Chinese food served European style), it would
be a long table of twenty-four. Only Chinese food was ever served in
our home; my parents' Jewish friends, who could only eat Kosher
food, always ate dinner at home before coming to our parties.
During these years I often saw Uncle Quo Wai (Q.W. Lee) and his
wife, Aunt Helen, at my parents' parties. Uncle Quo Wai is Father's
cousin who worked at the Hang Seng Bank. Father had high regard
for this cousin whom he believed had great potential, so he wanted
to introduce him to as many of his friends as possible. Today, Uncle
Quo Wai is Sir Q.W. Lee, a prominent Hong Kong citizen. In addi-
tion to holding many other titles, he is the chairman of the Hang Seng
Bank.
Father's habits became well known to everyone. Besides never
going to the movies, he never danced, to Mother's dismay. He would-
n't agree to be on any company board if he had to socialize with
movie stars. He never gambled, and mahjong playing was not
allowed in our house. Mother had one mahjong game a year on her
birthday, when she played with her siblings. Father loved his work,
and his only form of relaxation was going out on the launch on Sun-
days, enjoying nature.
There was a story about father being invited to the opening of the
May Flower, a dance hall owned by a business friend of his. Father
abhorred places of that sort and was not going to attend, but Grand-
uncle Lee Shu Yuen persuaded him to go with him. The dance hall was
on the second floor of a building and could only be reached by an esca-
lator. Apparently Father went up the escalator, turned around and
came back down, and considered that as having attended the opening.^
After we moved into Embassy Court, the yearly Christmas party
would be held at our home. It was a party for close relatives only, and
they always numbered over a hundred. There were presents for each
child and adolescent, and a raffle of a few gifts for the adults. I liked
getting involved in planning the presents, which included a large
number of Japanese toys.
For Christmas 1953 we did not have a party. Instead, my parents
took Christopher and me to Bangkok, Thailand. We were invited by
Father's friend, the "rice king" Ma Lushen, to travel on one of his
The Magical Years 99
merchant ships returning from Hong Kong to Bangkok. It was my
first cruise and it was a wonderful experience. We had private cabins,
and dined with the Danish captain and his officers. It was exhilarat-
ing to see flying fish sail through the air along the side of the ship.
Early one morning, Father called us up on deck so that we could
watch as the ship entered the estuary towards Bangkok. The sun was
just about to rise, and we saw jungle on both sides. As we approached
the city, we saw the silhouettes of temples backlit by an orange sky.
Then a red ball rose from behind the temples. It was absolute magic!
We stayed in the Oriental Hotel where we dined outside by the
river, with mosquito coils burning on the tables. That was before the
hotel was renovated and the dining room became enclosed. We were
invited by the Ma family a few times to their home and to restaurants.
During our visit I learned that the young men in Thailand, at the
age of eighteen, had to go either into national military service or to a
monastery to become a monk for a number of years. It was a wise
policy because it recognized that not all men are warlike.
We were invited to the American Embassy in Bangkok to see This Is
Cinerama, the first seventy- mm, three-projector, three curved-screen
movie. My parents also took us to see orchid farms and rice fields and
we went on a river cruise to see how the local Thai people lived.
At the end of our stay in Bangkok, Father thought we were all hav-
ing such a good time that he wanted to extend the holiday and to take
us to Singapore. I objected, because examinations would begin the
moment school started in January, and I needed to go home to study.
My father accepted my reason and we all returned to Hong Kong.
7
Towards
Racial Harmony:
The Hong Kong
Country Club
Back in 1927, when Father returned from England at the age of
twenty-two, he wanted to join the Hong Kong Club, which
used to be called the Hong Kong British Club until the end of the
nineteenth century. He was turned down because he was Chinese.
He never forgot this refusal. Later, when he was asked to join,
he declined the offer. As I grew older, I came to understand his
feelings.
One day after school in the 1950s, I was introduced to two visi-
tors. Governor Sir Alexander and Lady Grantham. Lady Grantham
was a friendly American who told me that I looked just like Father.
Before they left, they came into my room to say goodbye, and Lady
Grantham said to me that I looked just like Mother. Then she said,
"Now, what am I saying? I guess you look like both your parents."
After they left, Father said, "Don't mention this visit to anyone in
school. 丁 he governor is not supposed to be a guest in a Chinese
home." I wondered about the fact that we were, in effect, second-
class citizens, in a place we called home.
100
Towards Racial Harmony: The Hong Kong Country Club 101
A Multi-Racial Club
Soon after the war, Father and some of his friends came together
to discuss forming a multi-racial family social club in Hong Kong.
Historically, and well into the 1960s, access to social clubs in Hong
Kong was restricted by one's race, nationality or religion. The Hong
Kong Club, the Chinese Club, the Jewish Recreational Club, the Club
Lusitano for Portuguese, the German Club and the American Club
kept the different races separate. The exceptions were the cosmopoli-
tan clubs that only catered to sports or special interests.
The formation of a multi-racial club was the work of Father and his
friends over a period of fifteen years. In the forefront were Father, his
close friend, J. R. Jones, legal advisor to the Hong Kong and Shang-
hai Bank, and D.F. Landale, the taipan of Jardine Matheson. Landale,
who had unsuccessfully campaigned for the Chinese to be admitted to
both the Hong Kong Club and the Shek-O Country Club in the late
1940s, provided two hundred dollars to cover the initial expenses of
this club.' Landale retired in 1956, and his successor, Hugh D.M. Bar-
ton, assumed an active role in the formation of the club.
In 1947, Father and J. R. Jones submitted the original plan for the
interracial club to D.M. MacDougall, the Colonial Secretary. The
government was receptive to the idea of a multi-racial club. The site
on Brick Hill was chosen because it was easily accessible to the resi-
dents of Hong Kong. A group that included Father, D.M.
MacDougall and Sir Arthur Morse, Chief Manager of the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, who had been so helpful
to Father when Grandfather died, held informal talks. The group esti-
mated that $1.5 million was required to build the club. J.R. Jones
sent letters to various consular representatives, heads of banks and
representatives of different nationalities, setting out the broad outline
of the scheme of the club.
The planning went smoothly with the informal committee, and in
June 1948, a meeting was held in the boardroom of the Hong Kong
and Shanghai Bank to discuss the offer from the government. The
government agreed to lease approximately 7.5 acres fronting the sea
to the club at an annual rent of $7,200 for twenty-one years.
102 Building Bridges
A general meeting was called in April 1949. Some of the original
members of the informal committee had either left Hong Kong or
were on leave, and the composition of the membership changed. At
this meeting, the original name of the International Club was
replaced by the name Hong Kong Country Club. It was interesting to
note that of the fifty-six representatives from the various national
communities in the Colony, only two Chinese attended, Father and
M.W. Lo. The two confirmed the interest of the Chinese to join once
the club was formed. Three sub-committees were formed ― Legal,
Financial and Building. The Financial Committee, working through a
wider Appeal Committee, was able to obtain a total pledge of $2 mil-
lion from companies and individuals.
Negotiations with the government continued through 1949,
although the formation of the People's Republic of China by the Chi-
nese Communists caused a general feeling of uncertainty in the
colony. In 1950, when war broke out in Korea and the United
Nations imposed an embargo on shipments from Hong Kong, the
committee decided to postpone the development of the club.
In May 1951, the committee wrote to the government, requesting
that the site for the club be reserved pending a more favourable out-
look. By this time, D.M. MacDougall was no longer the Colonial
Secretary, and the government advised the committee that the offer
of the site could not remain open indefinitely, and that if other
applications for the site were received, an auction would have to be
held. This was an unexpected ultimatum. A legation consisting of
Father, J.R. Jones, M.W. Lo and G. L. Wilson called on the Colonial
Secretary, R.J. Nicoll, and an agreement was reached to reserve the
site until January 1952. Thereafter, J.R. Jones would report orally
to the government every six months. In the meantime, everything
was on hold.
Up to the end of the 1950s, the plans for the Hong Kong Country
Club remained unchanged. By May 1958, the acting Colonial Secretary,
E.B. Teesdale, again warned that the site would not be reserved indefi-
nitely. The government wanted a concrete proposal as evidence of a
firm commitment from the sponsors to build the club. Unfortunately, at
Towards Racial Harmony: The Hong Kong Country Club 103
this time, the reaction from the sponsors was discouraging, and it
looked as though the club would not be established.
In January 1959, the government gave the committee a deadline
of April 1 for the receipt of a concrete proposal. This called for def-
inite action, so Father and J.R. Jones called on two old friends,
Sidney Gordon, an accountant with Lowe, Bingham and Matthews,
and Y.K. Kan, a lawyer with Lo and Lo, to discuss whether the build-
ing of the club was viable. At this meeting, it was agreed that
renewed effort should be put into building a club, particularly since
so many refugees had arrived from China, and there was a great need
for club facilities. J. R. Jones promptly called together as many for-
mer members as possible, and a new committee of ten members was
formed. Since Jones was fully occupied with the Government
Salaries Commission, Hugh Barton agreed to be the convenor, with
Third Uncle as secretary.
In May 1959, a General Organizing Committee was formed con-
sisting of five Chinese representatives, three Britons, two Americans,
and one representative each from the Portuguese, Dutch, French,
Scandinavian, Swiss and Italian communities. A legation consisting of
Hugh Barton, J.R. Jones and Father called on the governor to seek his
support. The government confirmed its willingness to lease about
5.25 acres at the Brick Hill site to the club at an annual ground rent
of $10 per acre, with a building covenant of $1 million. Having
secured the land, the committee decided to raise the necessary financ-
ing by issuing debentures at $5,000 each. By February 1960,
sufficient funds were pledged. By December, when the club was
incorporated, 420 interest-free debentures had been issued, and the
subscribers were accepted as the first members of the club. From then
on, good progress was made under the supervision of architect Eric
Cumine, a friend of the Lee family.
In 1962, Father's dream of a multi-racial club for Hong Kong
was a reality. Even though the construction was not quite complet-
ed, January 29 was picked for the official opening, since it was
thought that the Year of the Ox would be a more propitious year
for the club opening than the Year of the Tiger, The Hong Kong
104 Building Bridges
Country Club was opened by Chief Justice, Sir Michael Hogan. He
said that it was to be:
a place where all nationalities and communities can meet
and relax in the pleasant, easy, companionable atmos-
phere that one is accustomed to find in a club ... Ideas can
be interchanged, views expressed and arguments deployed
in an atmosphere conducive to goodwill ... I am sure that
it will contribute to the future strength and stability of
Hong Kong.-
Construction was completed in February, and the club opened its
doors to members. In September, Jerry O'Donnell, a member of the
first General Committee, proposed a fashion show for the members
to view twenty of the latest fashions from eight cities from around the
world. Mother and Mrs. Hugh Barton were invited to organize a
Ladies' Committee to promote the show, and this became the first
Entertainments Committee of the Hong Kong Country Club.'
Towards Racial Harmony
Father always believed that there should be harmony among all
races. The Hong Kong Country Club was unique because of the
membership structure which was an integral part of the club's phi-
losophy, written into its Articles of Association. Admission to both
ordinary and junior members would be according to a national quota
system in order to maintain the truly international character of the
Club: 10 per cent American, 20 per cent English, 50 per cent Chinese,
and 20 per cent all other nationalities. However, due to anti-Japanese
feelings which still existed in Hong Kong at that time, a special quota
had to be created within the last group in order to maintain a truly
multi-national character/ The chairman of the Club was elected year-
ly. The first chairman was the Hon. Hugh Barton, and Father
followed for the term of 1963-1964.
In 1965, J.R. Jones, Hugh Barton and Father were nominated as
honorary life members. The membership was extended to Mother
Towards Racial Harmony: The Hong Kong Country Club 105
after Father died. The then chairman, Q.W. Lee (Uncle Quo Wai), in
bestowing the honour on J.R. Jones, cited:
the invaluable work that Dr. J.R. Jones had done for the
Club ... It can be said that, without Dr. Jones' pervasive and
persuasive enthusiasm, it is very doubtful that we would
have an international club at all.
J.R. Jones, in turn, said of Father that he had:
worked in close co-operation with myself and was on the
original Building Committee of the Club. Richard also
worked very hard to get the Club on a sound footing and
bring the venture to the successful conclusion that we see
today.
Since its opening, the Hong Kong Country Club has become a big
part of social life for families in Hong Kong. The club was Father's
pride and joy, despite the fact that during its first fifteen years, it
struggled to be financially profitable. We had many wonderful lunch-
es and dinners there (the dining rooms serve both Chinese and
Western foods). Our children have spent many happy hours at the
club during our visits to Hong Kong. We love the congenial and unos-
tentatious atmosphere and it has become a second home for us as
well as for many others in Hong Kong.
One Christmas, when we were in Hong Kong, our son Ashley, at
the age of three, asked why there was a Santa Claus in Toronto and
one in the Hong Kong Country Club, and why the latter had a female
voice! Another year, the March break of our children's school hap-
pened to coincide with Easter. Our boys will never forget the fun they
had at the Easter party with the magic show and egg hunt at the Club.
In the 1970s, when corporate nominee memberships were intro-
duced, the Club became financially profitable, and it earned enough
to embark on a complete renovation and beautification program.
The understated and congenial atmosphere, the sports facilities, the
swimming pools, the children's playground and the children's pro-
grams, the restaurants for casual and formal dining and the adult
106 Building Bridges
social programs made it popular, even though new clubs were being
started in Hong Kong at the time. With the help of professional man-
agement, the Club blossomed. By the 1980s, companies were lining
up to pay $1 million for a corporate nominee membership. Father
was a happy man.
Swimming at the Club
Father was well known for his early morning swim at the Hong
Kong Country Club. He would usually arrive around five o'clock,
and the pool would be opened especially for him. Whenever we were
home visiting, he would return after his swim in time to have break-
fast with us. Even with that kind of schedule, he was still the first
person to arrive at the office in the morning.
One morning, on his way to swim, Father was stopped by a
policeman for a routine check. He was asked to show his I.D. card,
which everyone in Hong Kong was supposed to have. Father had
never bothered to get one because most people knew Father by sight.
I'm sure if he had been chauffeured in an expensive car instead of
driving himself in a Volkswagen Golf, he'd never have been stopped.
When he returned to the office that morning, he told his secretary
about the incident, and asked her to get him a card right away.
Although I.D. cards had to be obtained personally, an exception was
made for Father.
During the years when he drove to go swimming at the Country
Club, he used to pick up poor schoolchildren from the area who had
to walk to school along his route. He got to know a number of them,
and their parents as well. One morning, one of the children he usual-
ly drove was not there. The child's father was waiting for him instead
and he begged Father to help his sick wife. Father took them to the
hospital, and saw that she was cared for.
In 1972, when Hong Kong Land wished to take over Dairy Farm,
Father was asked to help. Dairy Farm's chairman and major share-
holder was Sir S.N. Chau, a good friend of Father's. Hong Kong Land
chairman Henry Keswick, nephew of Father's old friend, John Keswick,
former head of the Jardine Group, came looking for Father. Since it was
Towards Racial Harmony: The Hong Kong Country Club 107
very difficult to get an appointment to see Father in his office, Henry
Keswick decided to go early in the morning to the Country Club to
catch Father while he was swimming. He followed Father along the
edge of the pool as he swam back and forth, and tried to convince him
to assist. His persistence paid off, and the takeover was successful.
Hong Kong Land Company Ltd. and Dairy Farm, Ice & Cold Storage
Company Limited merged in December 1972.*' After that, everyone
teased Henry Keswick about how nice it was of his Uncle Dick to help
him take over Dairy Farm/
8
The Lee Family:
Business Projects
Rebuilding the family business after the war was a slow process.
To start with, many of our property records had been lost.
Father's first secretary after the war, Violet Kong (who later married
one of Father's cousins and became Aunt Violet), used to follow
Father to the Land Registry Office to look for the original records.
Father's Eighth Uncle (a cousin of Grandfather's) worked there and
was able to help. However, the work was complicated by the fact that
the properties had been registered under different names by Grand-
father when he purchased them. Some were under Grandmother's
name, others under the names of Lee Hysan Estate Company or Lee
Cheuk Yu Tong, the latter is the collective name representing all of
Grandfather's descendants.'
Many of our properties were in bad condition because of the war.
Some of the older buildings were so out-dated that they did not even
have flush toilets. After the war, landlords were not allowed to raise
rents above prewar levels, so most landlords could not afford to
repair or upgrade their buildings; some could barely cover their taxes.
Some of our old apartments had rented for as little as twenty dollars
a month before the war. Moreover, during the Japanese occupation,
some old tenants had gone to China, and others had moved into the
empty apartments. There was a prevalence of multiple occupancy and
108
The Lee Family: Business Projects 109
multi-layered subletting that further complicated matters. It was dif-
ficult to establish who the legal tenants were.
Those who profited from this situation were tenants who paid pre-
war rents and sublet their apartments at current rates. Businesses that
occupied older premises benefited from the 10 to 12 per cent rise in
prices of products which, unlike rents, were not controlled.
The problem of what to do with the prewar buildings was not
solved until the mid 1950s. On March 19, 1956, Father was elected
Chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Property Owners. Since
the Lee family owned a lot of prewar properties, he was able to speak
out for landlords in the same predicament. Father appealed to the
government to allow rent increases that would be fair to both tenants
and landlords.'
Our family company, Lee Hysan Estate Company, moved into an
old building, Alexander House, in 1946. It was put under the man-
agement of Tsui Gang Bo, who later became Uncle Tsui to us. I
particularly remember the creaky floors in the building. Throughout
their lives, the Lee brothers had their offices together. Sometimes after
school, I would go there to wait for Father to go home, and one of
my favourite pastimes was to play with the typewriter. Cousin Hon
Chiu remembers how impressed he was that Third Uncle had a win-
dow unit air-conditioner in his own office, which was considered very
progressive right after the war.
There were two rental offices. One office, Lee Cheuk Yu Tong, col-
lected rent from properties belonging to Grandmother. The other, Lee
Doong, collected rent for Lee Hysan Estate Company."* As cousin Peter
Lee told me, everything in the family company was done in the old-
fashioned way for years after the war, agreements and decisions were
by word of mouth or recorded on bits of paper that have since been
lost. Peter, a lawyer and a director, has been general manager of the
family company since the early 1980s. He has tried very hard to look
for past company documents, such as land title deeds or company
meeting minutes or contracts for our buildings, but with little success.'
At the beginning of the 1970s, the Lee brothers decided to abandon
their conservative approach to business." Through his friend the Hon.
110 Building Bridges
J.D. Clague, Father was introduced to Chan Tak Tai, a developer who
had been very successful in the development of the Chungking
(Chongqing) Mansion in Kowloon. Chan suggested to Father that the
family form joint ventures in developing two buildings in the Cause-
way Bay area, One Hysan Avenue and Leighton Centre, with Lee
Hysan Estate putting up the land, and investors putting up the capi-
tal. Chan himself invested a small percentage.' In 1970, a private
company, Hennessy Development Co. Ltd., was incorporated.
Up to that point, all our postwar buildings had been wholly owned
by the family company and built by Lam Woo Construction because
of the friendship between the two families. From the beginning of the
1970s on, building plans were sent out for tender. 丁 he new approach
also demanded fresh blood in the family business. The first person the
Lee brothers turned to was the eldest grandson, Hon Chiu. In 1976,
while Hon Chiu was working for the Radio Corporation of America
(RCA) in the United States, Fourth Uncle asked him to return to
Hong Kong to help. Hon Chiu was in his forties with a growing fam-
ily. He agreed to return to Hong Kong, but his wife, Doris, stayed on
in the States so that their children could continue their education
without interruption.
The Lee Theatre
The Lee Theatre was back in operation by 1946. International
Entertainment was again under general manager Yuen Yaohong and
manager Dong Zi Jun. At the end of the war, C.T. Wu was still work-
ing with the Overseas Union Bank of Singapore and was about to be
sent to the branch in Shanghai, but Father convinced him that he
would have a better future with us. So he came back to Hong Kong
and became the house manager of the Lee Theatre. The theatre was
renovated and a high quality screen, good lighting and comfortable
seats were installed.**
There was no television in those days, and it was a treat for all the
Lee children to go on Sunday mornings to the Lee Theatre to see car-
toons and the Three Stooges. Box B, the best box in the theatre, was
reserved for the family. We seldom went to other theatres because the
The Lee Family: Business Projects 111
Lee Theatre showed some of the best movies in town. I sometimes
went to see American feature films with other family members, but
until I was able to understand enough English, they were not very
meaningful, except for Tarzan and cowboy movies. Cantonese
movies gradually gained popularity, but they were all sad. Most of
them were about suffering in the last war. I stopped going to those
because I didn't believe in crying when I wanted to be entertained. By
then, I had noticed that Father never went to movies. He was much
more interested in working.
In 1948, International Entertainment was asked to be the distributor
in China for the London Film Company. Armed with four blockbusters
which had been shown at the Lee Theatre with overwhelming success 一
The Thief of Bagdad, Lady Hamilton, The Four Feathers and Elephant
Boy ― general manager Yuen Yaohong and house manager C.T. Wu
went to Shanghai, but the response was very disappointing. The the-
atres in Shanghai did not seem to know how popular these movies were
in the rest of the world. The two men didn't even make enough money
on that trip to cover their expenses. However, while they were there,
they made some important contacts with producer Xia Yunhu and
director Cai Chusheng, who wanted to establish good relations with the
Lee family, and subsequently sent the films Yi Jiang Chun Shut Xiang
Dong Liu {A River of Spring Water Flowing to the East) and Ba Qian
Li Lu Yun He Yue (Eight Thousand Miles of Cloud and Moon) to be
shown in the Lee Theatre. These very sad movies, which depicted the
life of the Chinese during the war and were critical of the actions of the
Nationalist government in China, became great hits in Hong Kong.
Despite their sympathy towards the Communists, both producer and
director were later killed during the Cultural Revolution"
Not long after Yuen and Wu left, Shanghai was liberated by the
Communists.
The performance of Chinese operas in the Lee Theatre was on the
decline, despite the fact that, from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, the
most celebrated performances in Cantonese opera from the innovative
Sin Fung Ming Company, which was very highly regarded by both the
community and local government, were held there. At the same time,
the Lee Theatre became a favourite venue for stage performances from
112 Building Bridges
different parts of the world. I especially loved Xavier Cougat and Abby
Lane and their troop of Latin American dancers. The theatre also pre-
sented magic shows, and later, international beauty contests. In the
early 1970s, after the Lee Gardens Hotel was built, the beauty contes-
tants were always housed there. Mother's sisters used to love to go to
The Lee Gardens to see the beauty contestants. At the end of the
1980s, Fourth Uncle and I were passing the Lee Theatre one day, and
he told me about the International Chinese Beauty Contest that had
taken place in the theatre that year. He said, "One of the contestants
was from Scarborough, Ontario," and I told him that I had been one
of the judges in the competition held by the Scarborough Chinese Busi-
ness Association which chose that particular contestant.
The accountant for International Entertainment was Grandfather
Wong who worked until he was over eighty years old. Father kept
him in that position just so that he would have something to do. He
was pampered whenever he was in the office. He remained very
bright into his late eighties and he died at the age of ninety-two."
Property Development
The perennial problem facing building developers in Hong Kong
was the lack of flat land. It was the same with the Lee family. If we
wanted to erect more buildings, we had to level the Lee Gardens hill
and obtain dumping rights from the government. Before the Second
World War, a small part of the Lee Gardens hill had been levelled and
the soil moved to North Point for landfill. We then purchased that
piece of land from the government and built two factories, a nail fac-
tory and a paint factory called Duro Paint. The nail factory was
subsequently sold to another Chinese manufacturer. Duro Paint was
sold to Swire'- in 1948, and Duro Paint Holding Co." was formed.
The Lee Hysan Estate Company was given shares in lieu of payment,
resulting in the family being one of the largest shareholders of Swire.
This was the beginning of a long and meaningful relationship between
the family and the Swire Group. Fourth Uncle was a director of Swire
Industries, and Third Uncle became a director of Cathay Pacific
(owned by Swire Pacific)."
The Lee Family: Business Projects 113
The first postwar real-estate development by Lee Hysan Estate
Company was the further levelling of the Lee Gardens hill. The Hong
Kong government gave permission for dumping in Chai Wan and
Aberdeen. Opening up the area also meant building roads. Hysan
Avenue, named after Grandfather, became the main avenue; Lan
Fong Road, named after Grandmother, was the one behind it. Other
streets were named Sunning, Sunwui, Hoiping and Yunping, after the
Szeyup counties in China which formed the nucleus of our ancestral
and neighbouring villages. Pak Sar Road was named after Chan Pak
Sar (Chen Buosha), a famous scholar in the Ming Dynasty from Sun-
wui, our ancestral village, and Kai Chiu Road was named after Liang
Kai Chiu (Liang Qichao), another famous scholar at the beginning of
this century from Sunwui. And of course, there had to be a Lee Gar-
dens Road. These were all private roads that were subsequently
turned over to the government.
One day in the 1950s, after we moved from the Lee Building to
Embassy Court on Hysan Avenue, Father was driving me to school.
As he was making a turn from Hoiping Road to Hysan Avenue, a
man was taking his time crossing the road. Father, being very impa-
tient, said to him, "Hurry up!" The man said, "I can take as long as
I want. It's not your road." To which Father replied, "It is my road!"
In order to finance new buildings, the family sold some of our very
old row-houses and apartments. The first postwar apartment build-
ing put up by the family company was Sunning Court, on the south
side of Hysan Avenue. Sunning Court was the first building in Hong
Kong that sold apartments outright." It was built in a U-shape, with
the bottom of the U facing Hysan Avenue. The part of the building
with the frontage on Hysan Avenue was sold to Kwong Lee Enter-
prises, a company owned jointly by Lee Hysan Estate Co. and
Shanghai Commercial Bank. It ran a small hotel called Sunning
House, with fifty-two rooms. Father was the chairman of Kwong
Lee, and its directors were Third Uncle, Tsui Gang Bo, Zhu Rutang
and Wang Changlin of the Shanghai Commercial Bank."
Sunning House opened for business in 1949 with C.T. Wu as man-
ager. The Communist takeover of China had made it into an instant
success. The connection with the Shanghai Commercial Bank helped
114 Building Bridges
bring many of the important Shanghai industrialists who came down
to Hong Kong to stay there.' It became a landmark and its Cham-
pagne Room was the hottest spot in Hong Kong throughout the
1950s. There, guests could dine elegantly and dance to the beautiful
music of the Three Bubbles, which was carried on Rediffusion" every
Wednesday night. Guests had to be well dressed to be admitted into
the Champagne Room, and gentlemen had to wear ties, I remember
a humorous write-up in the newspaper in the mid 1950s about a min-
ister of the church wearing a Roman collar, who was not allowed in
because he was not wearing a tie. The Champagne Room was patron-
ized by visiting movie stars, such as Hedy Lamarr, Clark Gable, Ava
Gardner, William Holden and Rita Hayworth. A popular night spot
for locals and for visitors, it was said that if you had not been to the
Champagne Room, you had not been to Hong Kong."
The next major project of the Lee family was Embassy Court on
Hysan Avenue. It was the first high-rise owned by the family. When
it was completed, my family, Fifth Uncle and his family and Third
Grandmother moved into the building. Following that was the build-
ing of Caroline Mansion, at the intersection of Hysan Avenue and
Yunping Road. When that was completed, the rest of the Lees who
had been living in the Lee Building moved in.
The Lee Building was rented to outsiders, as it had been in Grand-
father's day. It was an unwritten tradition in the Lee family that every
member of Grandfather's family ― wife, concubines and children ―
had free accommodation in family-owned buildings, and everyone
got to choose where they wanted to live. Because of this tradition,
family members tended to live very close to one another. This tradi-
tion does not extend to my generation.
In 1954, the Lee family built two more high-rise buildings, Tower
Court and Caroline Mansion, just a few steps away from Embassy
Court. On the weekends, whenever we were not on our launch, Father
would go to check the new buildings. He would walk all the way to
the top to see that the workers were doing their jobs properly.
My favourite haunts in the 1950s were the Lee Theatre, the
Champagne Room in Sunning House and the soft drinks factory of
Spa Foods Company Limited, also owned by the Lee family after the
The Lee Family: Business Projects 115
war. As children, we used to visit Spa and watch the bottling process
with fascination. We could naturally drink whatever we wanted. The
best seller at the time was the grape drink,-" but my favourite was the
red drink which I thought was cherry, but was really only coloured
sugar water.
In 1953, Seventh Uncle came back to Hong Kong after graduating
from Boston University. Together with Third Uncle, he bought the
majority shares from Spa and formed the General Bottling Company.
From then on, the Lee Hysan Estate Company only had a nominal
share in Spa. In 1955, General Bottling secured the franchise for
Schweppes, and a year later, the franchise for 7- Up, and subsequently
a Japanese beer. The children in the family continued to be welcome to
visit the factory, and any soft drink that we wanted would be delivered
to our homes. Seventh Uncle became very successful. He used to ride
in the delivery trucks (in American style) to the chagrin of the locals,}
I still remember trucks driving up to St. Paul's Co-educational College
during recess and handing out free 7- Up. A brilliant marketing ploy.
Seventh Uncle named 7-Up as Seven Happinesses in Chinese. Because
of its lucky name, 7-Up was served at all Chinese celebrations.
The Lee Gardens Hotel
By the late 1950s, the Lee Gardens hill was completely flattened.
One of the people from our village in China, who was using part of
the land for keeping honeybees, was worried that once the land was
built on, he would have nowhere to keep his bees, and he went to the
Lee brothers to express his concern. He was allowed to carry on his
business on a piece of land in Sha Tin which was in the name of Lee
Shiu Yuen, Grandfather's young cousin."
The development of the first phase of what was later known as the
Lee Gardens Hotel began in 1964. The original plan was to build a
residential complex with an office podium. The office portion, con-
sisting of the first six floors, was built and rented mainly to the
Medical and Education Departments of the Hong Kong government.
The ground floor was let to commercial establishments. However,
construction of the residential component was stopped, because of
116 Building Bridges
the Cultural Revolution in China and the subsequent 1967 riots in
Hong Kong. At the end of the 1960s, with the completion of the
Cross Harbour tunnel whose exit was nearby, and because of the
shortage of hotel rooms in Hong Kong at the time, the family decid-
ed that a hotel should be built. A nine-hundred-room hotel above the
podium was completed at the end of 1971."
The Lee Gardens Hotel was a private company, with Lee Hysan
Estate Company as the major shareholder. Some of the other share-
holders were Swire Pacific, Hong Kong Bank, Hong Kong Land, Tai
Cheung Development and A. P. Meller. Swire chairman H.J.C.
Browne was invited to be the first chairman of the Lee Gardens Hotel
Company." He was followed by Third Uncle. After the sudden death
of Third Uncle, Father became chairman. Father was involved in the
hotel right from the beginning as a director. Through his personal
connections with China the original carpets for the hotel lobby were
custom-ordered from Tianjin. Because of Father's connection with
the Japanese community, tour groups from Japan always stayed at
our hotel.
At the time, the Lee Gardens Hotel was one of the few locally man-
aged hotels of international standard. It was initially associated with
Forum Hotels, a division of Intercontinental.-^ Over the years, the
hotel became the favourite of Asian tourists due to its location in
Causeway Bay. The hotel once again put the name Lee Gardens on
the map of Hong Kong.
As Mother was getting on in years, it became too much work for
her to entertain at home, so when the hotel opened, my parents enter-
tained almost exclusively there.
There were different restaurants in the Lee Gardens Hotel, but my
parents' favourite was the Chinese restaurant, the Rainbow Room.
When they had parties, they would usually reserve a private room
(with a round table seating twenty-four guests), or take over the entire
restaurant. My parents were very proud of the standard of the cuisine
there, and Father always said that the Peking Duck was number one in
Hong Kong, and better than in Beijing. He liked to point out to guests
any special dishes introduced from mainland China. Friends from all
over the world were invited to the Lee Gardens Rainbow Room.
The Lee Family: Business Projects 117
With the completion of the Lee Gardens Hotel, the entire area of
what was the Lee Gardens was developed. Along Hysan Avenue was
planted a row of Bauhinia, which is now the symbol of the Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region. Trees with yellow flowers were
planted on the side roads, which were named after ancestral villages.
Father showed them to me with pride, not only because they were
usually in bloom when we visited in the winter, but also because he
had them specially brought in from south China.
Father and Hon Chiu
when Hon Chiu returned to Hong Kong, the family company had
just moved into its premises in the newly completed office building,
One Hysan Avenue. Hon Chiu was able to learn how to manage an
office building. Although Third Uncle wanted Hon Chiu to keep an
eye on the staff on the twenty-second floor, Father gave him an office
on the twenty-first floor with all the uncles, a corner office overlook-
ing the construction of Leighton Centre. Father gave him the
responsibility of overseeing the actual construction of the building,
taking over the responsibility Father used to impose on himself dur-
ing the construction of our former buildings.
Hon Chiu had coffee with Father every day and gave his report,
which "must not be longer than fifteen minutes." Father was an
impatient man. He needed to know about progress, and if Hon Chiu
ran into any difficulty, Father could usually solve it for him within
half an hour because of his extensive connections.'' Father also sug-
gested that Hon Chiu join the Hong Kong Country Club. It had a
long waiting list, but since Father was a founding member, there was
no problem for his nephew to join. Father also introduced him to
many of his good friends, such as Geoffrey M.T. Yeh and Yao Kang, 丄 、
who turned out to be extremely helpful to him for years to come, and
for which he was very thankful.
Every Sunday throughout the year, Father and Hon Chiu would
spend the day on our launch. By the late 1970s, Mother had lost
interest in the launch, and seldom went out with them, but if any of
us were in Hong Kong, we loved to go along. Father no longer liked
118 Building Bridges
staying out late, so his habit was always to return to Queen's Pier
around four in the afternoon. Father was grooming Hon Chiu for
future leadership of the Lee family's many enterprises.
In 1978, a directive (not an order) was received by Lee Hysan Estate
Company from the Hong Kong government to build on our empty
land along Hennessy Road. There had never been any rush among the
Lee brothers to build on this site.-' In 1976, Third Uncle had held dis-
cussions with the Citibank about a joint venture to build an apartment
building on the land, but the talks fell through. Now the area around
it had been built up, but our land remained empty. People in Hong
Kong were wondering why the Lee brothers didn't develop the land
since it was so valuable. The truth was that nobody had the time, so
no one bothered. Now that nephew Hon Chiu was back in Hong
Kong, it became his responsibility to supervise the development of this
project, known as Hennessy Centre, on Yee Wo Street, under the com-
pany name of Hennessy Development. It was again a joint venture
between Lee Hysan Estate Company and investors.
When the foundation of Hennessy Centre was first excavated, Hon
Chiu would go to the site every weekday, as well as after the launch
picnic on Sunday. Sometimes Father would go along with him. The
excavation dragged on, because the construction crew was having
trouble reaching bedrock. It was very puzzling for both the founda-
tion builder and for Professor S. Mackey, a retired engineering
professor from Hong Kong University, who was hired as the consul-
tant. In the meantime, Father was extremely impatient and was
getting after everyone, including Hon Chiu. So, every weekday, after
morning coffee with Father, Hon Chiu would call Professor Mackey
to see if there was any progress that day. As Hon Chiu laughingly told
me, "If you haven't reached bedrock, you haven't reached it. Getting
after people wouldn't make it any faster!"
Finally, one day, Professor Mackey decided to go to the bottom of
the hole to check the situation with the structural engineer Stanley
Weber from Eric Cumine's architectural firm. He assessed the situa-
tion and gave his "O.K." for the foundation to be built. And that was
good enough for everyone. Hon Chiu said, "When Professor Mack-
ey said 'O.K.', it's O.K.!"
The Lee Family: Business Projects 119
The Lee brothers disagreed over the plans for the top and the bot-
tom floors. Fourth Uncle wanted the lower floors built as a theatre
for Chinese opera and performances of Chinese music, but this was
considered an unprofitable proposition by the rest of the brothers.
Finally nephew Hon Chiu had the plans redrawn to the satisfaction
of all the uncles. Hon Chiu moved the original carpark from the base-
ment to the lower floors, and the basement became retail space. After
many discussions, it was finally agreed that the top two floors would
be retained for rental to a private club, and it was taken up by the
Japanese Club. It was not unusual for the Lee brothers to disagree
over family business, but matters were always settled within the fam-
ily, and they always presented a united front to the community.'" The
Hennessy Centre was completed in 1981.
The next project was the redevelopment of Sunning Plaza. The
property consisted of Sunning House, the small hotel with its main
entrance on Hysan Avenue, and Sunning Court behind, which con-
tained more than sixty apartments. Every apartment owner was a
shareholder of Associated Property. Presentations were made to the
shareholders, and after many questions and various disagreements,
votes were taken. Hon Chiu noted that that was the only time in the
seventy-four-year history of Lee Hysan Estate Co. Ltd. (the company
founded by Grandfather in January 1924) that votes had to be count-
ed, because of the involvement of so many outside shareholders. In
1980, the Sunning Plaza project, with I.M. Pei as architect, was begun.
The Public Company
Because the ownership of Leighton Centre, One Hysan Avenue,
Hennessy Centre and Sunning Plaza and Sunning Court was split
between investors and Lee Hysan Estate Co. Ltd., in many different
shareholding structures, the Lee brothers decided to consolidate and
create a public development company. 丁 he original Hennessy Devel-
opment Co. Ltd., which was incorporated in 1970, became Hysan
Development Company Ltd. in 1 981," and obtained listing on the
Hong Kong Stock Exchange in August, issuing 500 million ordinary
shares. Father was the chairman of the company. Hon Chiu and
120 Building Bridges
Fourth Uncle formed a committee to take care of details, and every
day, Hon Chiu gave Father his progress report over coffee."
Wardley Limited, our merchant banker, advised the family that it
would be more attractive to investors of Hysan Development if, in
addition to rent collecting, there were other activities, such as buying
and selling properties for further developments. Wardley suggested
the injection of the property known as the Big House and the Lee
Building, our ancestral homes with its surrounding gardens (74-86
Kennedy Road)" wholly owned by Lee Hysan Estate Co., into Hysan
Development Co. Evaluations were done by Jones Lang Wootton.
Since Hysan Development did not have the cash to buy the property,
the property was exchanged for deferred shares in the company for
the family in the amount of $875 million. When Hysan Development
took over the property, it was developed in 1985 into a luxury resi-
dential complex known as Bamboo Grove, which consisted of 345
apartments. Again, many family members moved into this new com-
plex, including Mother after Father passed away.
When Hysan Development first went on the market in 1981, its
shares were valued at one dollar. From then on, the Hong Kong market
started to slump and the shares gradually went down to as low as thir-
ty-nine cents. One reason was the death of Chen Tak Tai, one of the big
shareholders. His son David, who held his shares, decided to sell all of
them, thus bringing down the value. Both Father, as chairman, and Hon
Chiu, as the managing director, had a lot of responsibilities and wor-
ries. Father appealed publicly to the shareholders not to sell, reassuring
them that the value would go up again. Time proved him right.
One day in the early 1980s, while out on our launch, Father told
Hon Chiu that "if nobody says anything bad about you, you are
already doing very well. Don't expect anyone to praise you for what
you do." Hon Chiu said that these were some of Father's words of
wisdom that he would always remember. After Father passed away in
1983, the chairmanship of Hysan Development went for a few years
to Fourth Uncle, who then passed it on to Hon Chiu," who remains
chairman today.
At the beginning of the 1980s, Hong Kong faced a major econom-
ic downturn. I remember seeing pessimism everywhere, except in my
The Lee Family: Business Projects 121
own family. Father, of course, had never-ending faith in the future of
Hong Kong. These were the years when Britain and China started
talks for the return of Hong Kong to China. From the mid-1980s on,
Hysan Development continued to buy more and more properties for
development, not only in Hong Kong, but also in China, Singapore
and San Francisco. The stock market gradually turned around, but
Father never lived to see the great prosperity gained by Hong Kong
in the early 1990s.
With the development of Caroline Centre, a joint venture between
Hang Seng Bank and Hysan Development, the company shares went
up to thirty-two dollars in 1994. Hysan Development, controlled by
Lee Hysan Estate Co., the oldest Chinese property company in Hong
Kong, is highly respected in the business world and is regarded as one
of the top ten property companies in Southeast Asia. With its conser-
vative policy and the high-end tenants it attracts, Hysan Development
is regarded as a "boutique" property company." Father would have
been very proud of its achievements.
At the end of 1997, the Hong Kong stock market had another
downturn because of the economic crisis in Asia. Although share
prices of Hysan Development Company dropped, the profits of the
company continued to increase and its future remains bright.
9
A Daughter
Grows Up
By 1954, my parents were planning to move from Embassy Court to
Tower Court, a new high-rise the Lee family was building on Hysan
Avenue. Again we were going to occupy the penthouse, which took up
the entire top floor and half of the floor below. We moved in 1955.
Grandmother's Funeral
At the beginning of 1956, Grandmother became very ill. When
she died in early summer at the age of seventy-six, the Lee family
held a traditional Buddhist funeral for her. Her body was kept on
ice for forty-nine days in the pagoda by the fountain of Guanyin, the
Goddess of Mercy, in the garden of the Big House. Matsheds built
of bamboo and straw matting were erected in the bamboo garden
next to it. The right side was reserved for the men in the family and
the left side for the women. Robes of black or white were worn by
the descendants who took turns keeping watch over the body. As a
granddaughter, I wore white when I went every day after school. We
had very plain rice and vegetables for dinner, and we all ate togeth-
er in the matshed, sitting on the raised floor covered with woven
straw.
122
A Daughter Grows Up 123
Near the end of the forty-nine days, groups of monks and nuns
were hired to burn incense, and chant and pray for her. I believe they
were from different Buddhist denominations because they wore dif-
ferent types of robes. On the day of the funeral, the procession lasted
for hours. Afterwards, we all went back to the Big House. I was told
that the soul would leave the body in the form of a bird or a butter-
fly. As I was standing in the main hall and looking at Grandmother's
picture hanging in the centre of the end wall, I suddenly saw a but-
terfly flutter towards it, stop on the photograph and then fly out to
the terrace, and then it was gone.
That night, before we all gathered for dinner, paper objects were
burnt in the terrace to send to Grandmother in the other world. 丁 he
most important was a paper bridge, without which she couldn't reach
the other side. Other paper objects were in the shape of servants, a
big house, gold and silver money and a car. I was watching with fas-
cination while these objects were being burnt, when Fifth Aunt's
husband, Uncle Y.H. Kan, came up to me and said, "I guess Grand-
mother is going to the United States. The car has a left-hand drive!"
Then, we had a family dinner in the Big House. I remember Moth-
er and all the aunts had to wear special dull-coloured costumes for
that particular event, because the body had been buried and the fam-
ily had entered another stage of mourning.
A few days later, all the sons returned to the Big House after din-
ner because the spirit would be coming home. They walked around
the house and the garden, making sure the spirit knew that they were
there. And while they were in the garden, they said to one another
jokingly that they had better not relieve themselves since they could-
n't see where the spirit was.
I remember that Hon Chiu was about to marry an American, Doris,
in the United States when Grandmother died. Once they were married,
he would be allowed to remain in the States to work. By Chinese tra-
dition, descendants of the deceased were not allowed to marry during
the period of mourning. With his usual good sense, Father put a stop
to any objection from the family by saying that whoever objected to
124 Building Bridges
the wedding would have to offer Hon Chiu an equally good job in
Hong Kong. So Hon Chiu got married and remained in the United
States for the next twenty years.
Father and My British Education
Father had benefited a great deal from his studies and experiences
in England, and he believed that what was good for him would be
equally good for his children. At the beginning of the 1950s, he had
sent my older brother and sister to England, but because of my dif-
ferent temperament, Father kept me at home. When I was fifteen
years old, it was decided that I, too, would go to school in England.
In August 1956, my parents saw me off at Kai Tak airport. That
was when Hong Kong was still in the process of building a much-
needed new runway, which had been under discussion since the end
of the 1940s. The airport at that time was very small and quite prim-
itive. There was only one doorway for arrivals and departures.'
I flew to England with my sister and a friend, David K.P. Li.- My
sister and David were returning to England after the summer holi-
days. It was my first time away from home.
I had heard of London fog, but never quite knew what to expect
until our plane touched down in London. It was in the evening, and
I couldn't see anything. Not only could I not see, I was choking on
yellow smog. We were met by Uncle Ley On, Father's old friend, with
his Bentley, driven by his Burmese chauffeur, Ah Ong. We stayed for
a few days with him and his wife, Aunt Betsy, in their lovely house
with a beautiful garden in Surrey, outside London. It was in Uncle
Ley On's restaurant that I first came across the Chinese dish called
"Chop Suey." I wanted to know what it was, so I ordered it, but the
waiter wouldn't give it to me. He said that it was not for the Chinese;
it was just a name for left-overs.
Between 1956 and 1958, I attended Upper Chine School in
Shanklin, on the Isle of Wight, in southern England. I was sent there
to join my sister. The total number of students in this exclusive pri-
vate girls' school was just over two hundred, from Grade One to
Upper Six (Grade Thirteen). Most of the teachers were excellent, and
A Daughter Grows Up 125
the more advanced students were put into special classes. The small-
est class I was in was the mathematics class of two students, myself
and a girl from Thailand.
The school was situated on the upper part of the Chine River,
which was more a brook than a river. The school grounds, main-
tained by ten full-time gardeners, were very beautiful. During the
summer holidays, the grounds were open to the public. In the spring,
daffodils adorned the river-banks. During the summer term if it was
warm enough, we would sometimes have our classes out of doors.
Roses bloomed throughout the summer and fall. But in the winter,
everything was grey, cold and miserable.
When I went to Upper Chine, I skipped a year from Form Three
(Grade Nine) to Form Five (Grade Eleven). Since I was expected to go
to Oxford, I had to take six "O" (Ordinary) level examinations at one
time. I wrote the examinations in my first year, as well as the "A"
(Advanced) level Chinese examination. In the following year, I took
many more. My parents were very pleased with my academic progress
because I came first in my class, but I was not happy.
What bothered me was not so much the school but the British pub-
lic-school system. For a person like me who already had self-discipline
and an artistic flair, the system just didn't work. I hated to be told
what to do at what time and on what day. I needed time and space of
my own and that was not possible when six to eight girls shared a
room. Lights had to be out at a prescribed time at night. We were told
when to eat, when to sleep, when to write our parents, when to bathe
(three times a week; the weekend was free, so I managed to bathe five
times a week instead of daily as I was used to at home), and almost
when to breathe ― that was when we were supposed to go outside for
recess no matter how cold it was. In the afternoon, we were supposed
to do sports. Since I hated sports, I always went for walks with some
of the girls from the Middle Eastern countries who hated sports too.
I was always hungry and cold because there was no heating. We
had to sleep with the windows open even in the winter with snow fly-
ing in. I slept with layers of clothing, and nine blankets on top and a
hot-water bottle at my feet. Fearing that I didn't have enough fresh
fruit in my diet, Father arranged for me to have two apples every day
126 Building Bridges
which I picked up in the kitchen during recess. And knowing that I
was always hungry, he arranged to have Cadbury send me boxes of
chocolate biscuits every term. But any food sent to the students could
be eaten only on Saturday afternoons and Sundays. Those were the
only years in my life when I became heavy, and I had chilblains on my
fingers and toes.
I also didn't believe in a school for girls only. I felt it a very artifi-
cial environment with a lot of silliness that wouldn't exist in a
co-educational school. No matter how well I did academically, or
how much I liked my teachers, I didn't feel that I belonged there.
Mother came to visit us in England in spring 1957. She first went
to see my older brother, Richard, who was in school in Nottingham.
When she saw him, she felt something was not right. He was show-
ing signs of mental illness that no one in the school seemed to have
noticed. She asked to have him seen by a psychiatrist, and from then
on, my parents' lives were never the same.
Since mental illness was something my parents couldn't cope with,
they seldom talked about it. As a result, I knew little about my broth-
er's condition. During my second year at Upper Chine, Richard was
hospitalized outside London. That year, I made a Christmas cake in my
Domestic Science class, the only Christmas cake I've made in my life.
During the holidays, I went with an aunt living in England at the time
to take Richard the cake. I felt that our childhood closeness was start-
ing to come apart. His condition sometimes improved, and he had
some good years, but his illness often caused him to stay away from
family members. Only a number of years later did I learn that his con-
dition was schizophrenia, which strikes about one child in a hundred,
and which usually manifests itself in the late teens or early twenties.
During my second year at Upper Chine, I wrote my parents to say
that I was leaving at the end of that year, and that I would finish my
last year of high school at St. Paul's Co-educational College. I didn't
list the reasons why, because I didn't want my parents to try to dis-
suade me. I was a wilful child.
Father was very disappointed because he believed in the English
public-school system. To most people it was almost an admission of
failure. However, that year, I came first again in my class. Besides
A Daughter Grows Up 127
adding many more "O" levels to my credit, I also passed the "O-A"
level in Mathematics with high marks.
I went home to Hong Kong in the summer of 1958 and did my last
year of school at St. Paul's. Father had very little to say to me at first,
because he was still upset by my leaving England. I guess he also
knew that I didn't intend to return to England for university as he had
originally hoped. The direction in my life had also changed. I decid-
ed that I didn't want to study mathematics as my teachers at Upper
Chine had recommended. (Mother thought I was such a good student
that I should study law, but Father did not express an opinion.)
Instead I wanted to study arts subjects, and take history at universi-
ty. Because of my change of direction, and also the change of school
system, I had to do two years' work in one in order to write my
Matriculation examinations. I borrowed notes from my old school
friends to catch up, but the results were not as good as before.
In 1958, my sister entered Oxford to study medicine, and Sixth
Uncle returned from the United States after getting his Ph.D. at
Princeton. He suggested that since I didn't want to return to England,
I should apply to colleges in the United States. Father put a stop to
that. He said that no child of his would be educated in the United
States. I did not know why he was so anti-American. I applied to two
Canadian universities, McGill University in Montreal and University
of Toronto. It was Father who decided that I was to go to McGill.
That year, I was working so hard that I was hardly aware of what
was happening in Hong Kong. I used to study in our roof garden,
besides going out on the launch, which by now was the Atalanta,
smaller than the Fortima. The only other child left at home was my
younger brother, Christopher. Our last coxswain, Ho Ning, came to
work for us then and remained with us for over twenty years. My
parents no longer wanted large groups of guests on our launch pic-
nics, especially when I wasn't there to do the inviting. For relaxation
from studying, I again turned to painting water-colours. It was then
that I started drawing faces.
This was also the year that I asked my parents not to call me "May"
any more, and to call me by my given first name, Vivienne, the name I
always used in school. Mother said, "It is a little late for us to make
128 Building Bridges
the change now, but when you go to Canada, no one knows that we
call you May, and people will only know you as Vivienne."
I was growing up, and would make many more decisions for
myself.
McGill, Marriage and Family
In August 1959, Mother and I flew to Canada. As usual, Father
made all the travel arrangements. We went first to the west coast,
then to the Rockies. Mother's cousin Ethel and her husband, Bill Poy,
invited us to stay with them in Ottawa and Bill and his son, Neville,
came to meet us at the Toronto airport. We stayed in Toronto and vis-
ited Niagara Falls, then drove to Ottawa for a few days. From there,
Mother and I flew to Montreal. Once I was settled in residence at
McGill University, Mother left for New York, and went home via
England, where she visited my older brother and sister.
I entered McGill as a sophomore, and Neville was in his final year
of medicine there. The years at McGill were wonderful, but I spent so
much time with Neville that I did not do as well as I should have aca-
demically. My priorities were different then. Mother wasn't happy
because she had other plans for me, but Father was not opposed to my
going out with Neville because he always appreciated able people.
In 1961, Neville wrote to Father to ask for my hand in marriage.
Father thought it was rather premature since I was still in university.
Later that year, I wrote to my parents to tell them that I was getting
married the following year when I graduated and turned twenty-one.
My parents had always known me to be headstrong but sensible.
Father approved of Neville, but Mother was so upset that she didn't
speak to me for years. She wondered why I had chosen a "poor boy. "
Knowing that love or happiness cannot be bought, I disagreed with
Mother. In the short twenty years of my life, I had met many miser-
able, wealthy people, and I wanted to be sure that I was not going to
join their number. As Neville himself said, he had no assets except for
his training and abilities, and that was good enough for me. Besides,
I was going to marry the man I loved, and Father understood that.
A Daughter Grows Up 129
Since Mother was having nothing to do with my wedding, I had to
look after all the arrangements myself, while studying for my final
examinations. Neville and I also had to find a place to live. I wanted
the graduation and wedding to be timed close together to make it
easy for Father to be present for both occasions. In the space of two
weeks, I had my twenty-first birthday, my graduation and our wed-
ding. Right after the Convocation, Father asked mc why I had only
honours and not first-class honours. He didn't realize what stress I
had been under in the last few months. However, I appreciated the
fact that he believed I was capable of doing better.
Neville was working in burns research at McGill University, teach-
ing anatomy, and getting his master's degree in surgery. The year after
our wedding, he went into the plastic surgery training program at
McGill. In 1964, he received a Molson Fellowship to spend a year in
England, training in the Mount Vernon Hospital in Middlesex, a major
plastic surgery centre. During that year, I took courses at the Institute
of Archaeology, University of London. It was a wonderful year for
both of us. We drove all over central Europe on twenty-five dollars a
day, before Neville started at Mount Vernon on July 1 .
During our year in England, we were able to see my brother
Richard quite frequently. He was in London, married, and had a son.
In the spring of 1965, we took a cruise in the Mediterranean, travel-
ling steerage, and drove around Scotland and Wales at Easter. My
parents were visiting England and I went to see them, and took
Mother a bunch of red roses. She spoke little to me, though Father
talked quite a bit. Mother's antagonism made it very awkward for
him, and I appreciated his kindness.
That summer Neville and I returned to Montreal, where he con-
tinued his training at the Montreal General Hospital, In September,
our first son, Ashley, was born. The following year, we began to hear
about the separatist movement in Quebec, while the city of Montre-
al was busy getting ready for Expo 67.
The year 1967 was an important one for us. Neville wrote his fel-
lowship examinations while bombs were going off in public places
and mail boxes in Montreal. It was the beginning of the Front for the
130 Building Bridges
Liberation of Quebec (FLQ) crisis in the province. Because of the
political unrest, when Neville was offered a staff position in the plas-
tic surgery department at the Scarborough General Hospital, we
moved to Ontario, even though Neville had already been offered a
junior staff position at McGill.
In February 1968, Mother suffered a minor heart attack. Subse-
quently, her doctor advised her to take a cruise abroad, so she took
her cousin's daughter, Chi Chao, to study in the United States. Moth-
er planned to visit her relatives there as well as in Vancouver. Her
heart attack prompted her to get in touch with me and she asked me
to go to see her when she arrived in Vancouver. That summer, I took
Ashley to Vancouver to see her. Mother's change in attitude towards
me made life a great deal easier for Father, and from then on, my par-
ents came to see us every year.
Whenever they visited us, Father always noticed how wonderful
Toronto was with all its parks and its residential areas lined with
trees. Father loved nature, and often said there weren't enough trees
in the populated areas of Hong Kong. Knowing me to be an avid gar-
dener, he often told me about his friend Sir Evelyn de Rothschild,
who also loved gardening.
We were living in a rented town-house complex in Toronto when
my parents visited in 1970. Neville was the only staff surgeon at the
Scarborough General Hospital who didn't own his own house. Father
thought it inadequate for a growing family, as we already had two
children by then ― Ashley and Justin, who was born in 1969. He
said we should be in a house with a garden. But I had very particular
ideas about the type of house I wanted — I wanted one with an art
room connected to the kitchen, and we hadn't been able to find one.
A house like that just didn't exist, so we decided to build our own,
and we were saving up for it. It had always been important to me to
bring up our children with artistic training. I hadn't dreamt of asking
my parents for help, but Father generously offered so that we could
proceed to build our house on the land we had already purchased.
In the spring of 1972 we moved into our new house. When Father
saw our unusually large living room, he offered to have a special
A Daughter Grows Up 131
carpet made for it through his connections in Tianjin, who had
made the carpets for the lobby of the Lee Gardens Hotel. He told
me that a custom-made carpet would take up to a year, but if I
wanted it right away, I could have two carpets laid side by side. I
chose to have something really special. I was sent books from which
to select the style I wanted, and I clipped colour samples from pic-
tures of flowers in a magazine to match the bricks of the living-room
wall. Father also asked me to choose a standard-sized carpet for our
blue dining room. It did take a year for the large carpet to arrive,
but it was worth the wait. It was most kind of Father, not only to
have given us the carpets, but also to have gone to all that trouble.
In 1972, Father arranged for my brother Christopher, who had
graduated from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, to have inter-
national financial training. He was to go to Geneva, then Wall Street.
丁 he last stop was Tokyo, where he would work at Yamaichi Securi-
ties, and Fuji Bank, whose president, Yoshizane Yuasa, was a friend
of Father's.' This was to be Christopher's golden opportunity.
Christopher was married and had a son. When he and his family
were on their way to New York, they visited us in Toronto and we
had a great time together. The strange thing was that he told me dur-
ing that visit, "Second Sister, I don't think I have long to live. Maybe
a maximum of fifteen years. But, I want to make it big before then!"
He was overweight, but he had had a check-up just before he left
Hong Kong, and had been given a clean bill of health.
One day, not long after Christopher and his family arrived in
New York, I got a call from Father saying that Christopher had
died. He was only twenty-five years old. Neville and I quickly left
for New York. Father was on his way from Hong Kong, but Moth-
er didn't come.
Apparently, Christopher had been walking with a friend during
lunch hour, when he suddenly collapsed and died. All the Lee family
members in New York were called, and they were there for us, help-
ing Father make funeral arrangements. Sixth Uncle, who was
teaching at the University of Kansas, also flew in. I was close to
Christopher, but I couldn't even begin to feel the pain Father must
132 Building Bridges
have felt, or what Monica, my sister-in-law, must have gone through.
Fortunately, the baby, Marcus, was too young to be traumatized by
the event.
Father took Marcus and Monica back to Hong Kong with him
after the funeral. He now had the added responsibility of Marcus's
well-being. From then on, he became a father as well as a grandfather
to Marcus. When Marcus was a little older, they spent every Satur-
day morning together. Marcus would go to Father's office to learn
Chinese calligraphy, watched over by Father, and taught by Miss
Leung, a staff member well known for her calligraphy.
In the early 1970s, I was made aware of the eventual change of
sovereignty of Hong Kong. During one of my parents' visits, Father
told me that he had been assured by the Chinese government that
Hong Kong would remain the same for fifty years after 1997, so he
was to feel free to invest and carry on with his business.
At Christmas 1976, as part of our annual visit to Hong Kong,
Father treated us to a cruise on the Rasasayang, from Singapore to
Bali. Our children ― Ashley, Justin and Carter, who was bom in 1973
― were so excited because it was their first cruise, and they thought
they were going on the Love Boat, which they had seen on television.
When the hotel reservations were made in Singapore, Father would
not book the Mandarin Hotel despite the fact that it is regarded as
the best, because his friend owned it, and would not charge if he
knew Father was the one making the booking.
February 1978 was my parents' golden wedding anniversary.
Father wasn't one to celebrate because he did not even celebrate his
own birthday. He never wanted anyone to make a fuss. But Mother
was very happy when Fourth Uncle insisted that such an important
occasion should be marked, and the entire Lee family would do it for
them.
As the celebration was in February, only Carter and I could
attend. Our other sons had to stay in school and Neville stayed
behind with them.
The party, held at the Lee Gardens Hotel, was attended by mainly
family members and some very close friends. My parents had a real-
ly good time. They had a beautiful anniversary cake covered in
A Daughter Grows Up 133
golden Oncidium orchids. When Father spoke, he pointed out that
fifty years ago, he and Mother had been married on exactly the same
spot in The Lee Gardens. The only difference was, in 1928, they had
stood on top of the hill. Father also mentioned that the recipe for a
long-lasting marriage was "arguing a little from time to time!"
With Father in China
In the fall of 1978, I mentioned to Father that I wanted to take
Neville and our sons to China. At that time, there was no tourism in
China, only groups arranged by the Chinese government. We had to
go to the Embassy in Ottawa for visas, and we could only get them
because Father had made arrangements through Beijing.
Father planned a wonderful trip for us. We first went to Hong
Kong for Christmas; we then went into China by train. Those were
the days when you could tell immediately when you crossed the bor-
der, because the scenery changed from high-rises and motor cars to
vegetable fields and bicycles. At the train station in Guangzhou, we
were met by officials, who helped us through border checking and
customs. Then we were met by our guide, who stayed with us
throughout our trip.
We flew from Guangzhou to Beijing and then worked our way
south, visiting all the major sights, as well as areas that tourists were
not normally allowed to enter. We met Mother's cousin and his wife,
Professors Eugene Chan and Winnifred Mao/ who were able to
make special arrangements for us to visit the Plastic Surgery Hospital
outside of Beijing, which was normally out of bounds. Neville mar-
velled at the work that was carried out under very primitive
conditions. In the Central Hospital in Beijing, we watched surgery
performed while acupuncture was used as anaesthetic. It was my first
experience in an operating room, and was I amazed that the patient
was talking to the nurse while undergoing a thyroidectomy. We were
also shown various other traditional Chinese treatments.
We visited the Great Walls and the Forbidden City, then we went
on to Hangzhou and Guilin. Everything we saw made a deep impres-
sion on us. At that time, people dressed in Mao suits, and referred to
134 Building Bridges
one another as comrades. There were no modern hotels, and we ate
in dining halls. There was no water early in the morning. But I
noticed that under the Chinese Communist regime, there were free
markets on Sundays where the population could exercise their entre-
preneurial skills.'*
When we arrived in Guilin, our son Justin became ill. Neville diag-
nosed it as scarlet fever, and put him on antibiotics right away. The
last day we were there, Justin felt much better and came on the tour
with us. We then flew to Guangzhou on New Year's Eve, where we
were met by Father.
While in Guangzhou, we were guests of the government, because
of Father, and we stayed in the guest house reserved for visiting heads
of state. Our boys wanted to buy firecrackers, so Father took us in a
minibus to look for some. We ended up having a city tour, but we
never did find any firecrackers. However, Father showed me a bridge
of European design which he had helped to build at the beginning of
the 1930s while working for the city of Guangzhou.
丁 hat evening, we were the guests of the deputy governor of Guang-
dong, since the governor was away. The dinner, held in the dining
room of the guest house, was splendid. Food for officials, even in a
poor Communist country, is the same anywhere in the world.
Father had planned for us to leave early the next morning to drive
to our ancestral village, so the only time he could show me the garden
in the complex was after dinner. We were all going to take a walk, but
Justin said he couldn't walk because of swelling in his knees. Neville
carried him to the bedroom while I took a walk with Father.
When I returned, Justin had a fever. Obviously, the antibiotic was
not working. A doctor was called immediately, and she suggested that
we take Justin to the hospital for a blood test. When we walked into
the hospital, with Justin in Neville's arms, Justin said, after one look
at the condition of the emergency department, "Don't leave me
here!" We had no intention of doing that. Since it was New Year's
Eve and all laboratories would be closed for two days, I decided that
Justin should be taken back to Hong Kong right away.
When we returned to the guest house, I went into Father's bed-
room and woke him up. I said, "Daddy, I have to take Justin back to
A Daughter Grows Up 135
Hong Kong right away. Can you get us plane tickets for the earliest
flight out?" He didn't have to ask me why and what happened at the
hospital, because he knew there was a reason for my decision.
"Tomorrow is New Year's Day. It may be very difficult," he said. "In
that case," I said, "get me a car, and we will start driving to Hong
Kong right away." He answered, "That would be even more difficult.
The roads are bad, and it would take me longer to arrange for
smooth passage through the border check points. I'll see what I can
do. I'm expected at the ancestral village, Ashley and Carter can come
with me." Unfortunately, Carter's name was on my passport, so he
had to return to Hong Kong with us.
Neville and I started packing immediately while Father went
downstairs to make arrangements. We were told by one of the offi-
cials that he would take us to the airport by five in the morning. He
couldn't guarantee us four seats on the first flight to Hong Kong,
but he would try his best. In the meantime, Father phoned Mother
to say that she was to call Seventh Uncle to make arrangements for
a paediatrician friend of his to see Justin when we arrived. On New
Year's Day it would be impossible to find a private doctor willing to
work. Father phoned the Hong Kong airport to arrange for us to be
met with a wheelchair, and for a car to take us to the Lee Gardens
Hotel. (We always stayed at the hotel unless I was in Hong Kong
alone or with just one of the children in order not to inconvenience
my parents and the household staff.) 丁 he hotel was right across the
street from my parents' home. After making all the arrangements,
Father then went back to sleep.
The next morning we were awakened very early. The kitchen had
prepared us a sumptuous breakfast which we could hardly swallow
because we were so anxious. We said goodbye to Father and Ashley
and left. We were very fortunate to be on that first flight to Hong
Kong, which took only twenty-five minutes. We were met as Father
had arranged. As soon as we arrived in our suite at the Lee Gardens
Hotel, Mother called to say that Seventh Uncle had made the medical
arrangements. Then Seventh Uncle himself called to say that he was
sending his chauffeur to pick us up and he would meet us at the
Emergency Department of the Hong Kong Sanatorium.
136 Building Bridges
At the Hong Kong Sanatorium, Seventh Uncle introduced us to a
paediatrician friend who was trained in the United States. The doctor
confirmed that Justin had scarlet fever and prescribed a higher dose
of antibiotic for him to take for a few more days. Everyone in Hong
Kong knew how expensive the Hong Kong Sanatorium was and still
is, and we were overwhelmed when Seventh Uncle said it was "on the
house," as he had already taken care of our medical bills. I've always
had a very special relationship with him ― he was more of a good
friend than an uncle. After all, he was only ten years older than
Neville. By that afternoon, Justin was already beginning to feel bet-
ter. The next day, we all went to a movie at the Lee Theatre.
These events made me realize how very much I'm like Father. We
understood each other without having to say a word, and I know that
if I had been in his shoes, I would have made arrangements exactly as
he did.
In the meantime, Ashley was having the time of his life being a VIP
guest with Father in Sunwui city, our ancestral home in China. In
anticipation of our visit, Father had also planned to take us all back
to Neville's ancestral village of Sunning, which is close to ours, being
one of the Szeyup villages. Although Neville wasn't there, Father took
Ashley to Sunning anyway, because he felt it important that Ashley
know where his ancestors from both sides of the family came from.
To Ashley's surprise, villagers from Sunning brought gifts to them,
including a live chicken.
Back in Hong Kong, Ashley told us about his adventures. He said,
"Gung Gung (maternal Grandfather) took me to a firecracker facto-
ry where one of the people there brought me outside to light
firecrackers. I was allowed to light as many as I wanted. We went to
see a hydro dam, and a large banyan tree by a river that was inhab-
ited by thousands of white cranes. We sat in a hot spring where Gung
Gung and I put eggs into the water to cook. But sharing a room with
him is a problem, he snores so loudly!"
Father was really glad to see that Justin had recovered his health.
Knowing how much Ashley had enjoyed the experience, he said to
Justin, "The next time will be your turn. I'll take you into the village."
Father was always happy when he was in China.
10
From Turbulence
To Reform:
A Vision For Higher
Education
Hong Kong society in the 1950s was divided into a number of
factions ― pro-Communist, pro-Nationalist, Pro-British and
others. Since politics were never mentioned in my home, I was not
sure what faction my parents favoured. At that time, the Chinese gov-
ernment's attitude towards Hong Kong became more relaxed, and in
1956, due to strong local demand, the border between China and
Hong Kong was reopened. Visitors from China were admitted freely
into Hong Kong provided they possessed re-entry permits to China.
From February to September, 60,000 came into Hong Kong and dis-
appeared into the general population.' This became an added burden
on the existing water supply, so the government moved to close the
border again. That year, violence erupted soon after I left for school
in England. A dispute over the Nationalists' National Day (October
10) celebrations led to rioting between Nationalist and Communist
supporters and against the colonial authority. The riot lasted for sev-
eral days until British troops were called out. Dozens were killed, and
thousands were arrested, imprisoned or deported.
137
138 Building Bridges
The Hong Kong government passed a series of laws to tighten
control of the population, giving it the power to close newspapers
and imprison its publishers for political offences. When any society
was formed, it had to register with the commissioner of police and it
was a criminal offence for any nine unrelated persons to assemble on
the street. Even under these regulations, there was a certain amount
of freedom as long as one did not advocate the overthrow of the
colonial government. I was old enough to understand the restric-
tions, and they affected my attitude towards the colonial government
of Hong Kong.
Then came the 1960s which witnessed the terrible Cultural Revo-
lution in China (1966-1976). The upheavals spilled over to Hong
Kong as social and political turbulence and riots. At the time, people
were shocked. But there were some positive consequences, as social
protests eventually led to social reforms.
The Riots of 1967
In China, in September 1965, Chairman Mao began to attack his
opponents in earnest, and this led to the Cultural Revolution. The
youths in China were given a free hand to attack culture, learning,
and, worst of all, educated people whom China needed most. In the
summer of 1966, there were eight parades by the Red Guards, a total
of 15 million youths, in Tiananmen Square. On August 22, 1966,
mobs of Red Guards, inflamed by reports of atrocities perpetrated in
Hong Kong by the British, invaded the British embassy in Beijing.
丁 he gates were broken and petrol cans were thrown at the buildings
which were set on fire. Zhou Enlai had to send the police and the Peo-
ple's Liberation Army to rescue the diplomats.
The Cultural Revolution in China did not prevent my parents from
travelling there in the 1960s, On one trip, He Mingsi, the Secretary of
Xinhua News Agency, accompanied them. They went to Chongqing,
where we used to live during the war. While Father was reminiscing to
He Mingsi about the old days, they were surrounded by crowds of
Red Guards. He Mingsi was really afraid, but fortunately, nothing
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 139
happened.- The Red Guards were apparently just curious, since my
parents, who tried to dress like the locals, didn't really look like the
rest of them.
In 1966, a peaceful protest in Hong Kong by a small group of
young people over an increase in ferry fares led to days of rioting by
frustrated working-class young men against what they saw as the
inequalities of society from which they had no way out. The police
stopped the riots by force. One young man was killed and many
arrests were made, and one demonstrator committed suicide after-
wards. On top of that, the unrest in China spread to Hong Kong.
In 1967, a factory labour dispute led to rioting in the working-class
districts, which touched off continuous demonstrations by students
from Communist schools against the Colonial government. This soon
developed into sporadic acts of violence by students and workers.
Some Hong Kong Communists or self-styled "Red Guards" manu-
factured homemade bombs which killed several people. Bombs,
commonly known as "pineapples," were left in public places in order
to cause maximum disturbance.' Some of them were real and some
were not. C.T. Wu, Deputy General Manager of the Mandarin Hotel
in Hong Kong at the time, said that the hotel remained open, but
there was hardly any business at all. The police started taking the
offensive that summer, making raids on Communist stores, unions
and schools/ There were a few deaths and many people were arrest-
ed. During these times of unrest, hundreds of community
organizations publicly declared their support for the government and
against the Communists.
In one of the letters Canadian Ruth Hayhoe' sent to her mother
from Hong Kong that year, she wrote that the bombs were "small
and innocuous," and that she saw a Communist blown up by his own
bomb in the summer. She also wrote that there was trouble in the
Heep Yun Middle School where she was teaching. A fourth-form stu-
dent put up a poster on the bulletin board denouncing the "slavery
education" of the school (Heep Yun is a Christian missionary school),
and hung a red flag outside the school. When reproached, the student
was very defiant and brought her father to the school. He was so
140 Building Bridges
angry that he slapped the head teacher across the face. Such was the
atmosphere in Hong Kong in 1967.''
Rioters threw stones at buses, and drivers were beaten up. 丁 he
London Insurance Association ordered Hong Kong insurance com-
panies to cancel all riot insurance. The managing director of the
Kowloon Bus Company went to see Yao Kang, a junior manager of
Swire Insurance, to appeal to the company not to cancel their riot
insurance, in order to give their drivers some measure of reassurance/
Rumours even spread that the Red Guards were marching against
Hong Kong. With growing panic throughout the colony, the popula-
tion hoarded food supplies and store shelves were empty. While my
parents were on a trip to Europe that summer, rumours spread that
Dick and Esther Lee had left Hong Kong, so conditions must be irre-
trievable. On hearing that, my parents returned to Hong Kong
immediately.
Father felt a deep sense of responsibility to the people of Hong
Kong. He believed that he could make a difference by appealing to
the Chinese government not to incite the crowd. Father's friend Jack
Cater, who was Defence Secretary of the Hong Kong government at
the time, came to Father's office every day during the worst period,
asking for help."* Father appealed to Lian Weilin, Director of Xinhua
News Agency and Fei Yiming of Ta Kung Pao, to ask Zhou Enlai not
to allow the riots to spread into Hong Kong.'* Actually, what hap-
pened in Hong Kong had very little to do with China, for Premier
Zhou Enlai had instructed the Xinhua News Agency that there would
be no change in the status of Hong Kong.
Memories of the fall of Hong Kong in 1941 came back to Mother,
and she was frightened. Father, on the other hand, would never con-
sider abandoning Hong Kong; he would defend it with his life. Father
took the lead, speaking publicly to calm the populace. He was out-
spoken against the Communists for their actions, and for the
disturbance caused in Hong Kong.'"
Conditions in China went from bad to worse. Anyone could be sub-
ject to attack. Mother's cousins, Professor Eugene Chen and his wife,
Professor Winnifred Mao, both opthamologists, were denounced,
beaten and driven out of their home. Their crime was that they were
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 141
educated, especially since Professor Chen had been trained at Johns
Hopkins in the United States. They survived and moved away and
lived in obscurity until my parents found them at the beginning of the
1970s. At the end of 1978, when we met them during our visit to Bei-
jing, Professor Chen showed us the French beret and a pair of
Western-style leather shoes he managed to hide from the Red Guards.
He said that if these had been found, they would both have been
killed.
As the Red Guards went through China like locusts, dead bodies
were dumped into the rivers. Some of these floated into Hong Kong
waters" and stirred up feelings of sadness and fear, since everyone in
Hong Kong had relatives and friends in China.
However, conditions gradually improved in Hong Kong. By the
beginning of 1969, everything was back to normal.
Social Reforms
The riots that started in 1966 prompted the Hong Kong govern-
ment to triple public spending on education to provide more
opportunities for young people, and to improve housing, health care
and social welfare. In 1967 the government realized that its legitima-
cy was no longer based on the Sino- British Treaties of the nineteenth
century, but had to be earned by its performance and by some sense
of community involvement.
By the beginning of the 1970s, the children of the refugees had
grown up. The census of 1971 showed for the first time a locally born
majority. As the older generation among the refugees died and were
buried in Hong Kong, their offspring gained a sense of belonging to
the Colony. Those who had made possible the economic and indus-
trial take-off in the 1950s and 1960s could now enjoy the fruits of
their labour.
Improvements in government assistance in education meant that
more children of illiterate parents now had the opportunity to finish
high school. A grant and loan scheme introduced in 1969 guaranteed
funding for needy students to complete courses at local universities.
The availability of opportunities for those with merit helped to further
142 Building Bridges
economic growth and encouraged a sense of belonging. When the peo-
ple of Hong Kong realized that they had not only been born and bred
in the Colony, but had also made great contributions to its success,
they started to demand improvements. The demands were not politi-
cal, but social and economic.
There were successive strikes and protests spearheaded by univer-
sity students, teachers, social workers, church leaders, nurses and
trade unionists. These strikes were basically peaceful and orderly, and
were characterized by a sense of purposefulness and self-discipline,
even though they broke the law against illegal association and illegal
assembly. The limited amount of violence that took place was often
provoked by the police"
University students led the Chinese-language movement which
demanded that Chinese be made an official language along with
English. After numerous sit-ins and public forums that were widely
supported in the community, the government conceded official sta-
tus for Chinese (Cantonese) for most public, administrative and
political uses.
Corruption has always been endemic in Hong Kong. Not much
was done until the 1970s, when demonstrations were organized by
university students and church groups involving tens of thousands of
citizens. The anti-corruption movement targeted the Hong Kong
police and other public agencies. In 1973, High Court Judge Sir Alas-
tair Blair Kerr was appointed by Governor Maclehose to sit on a
one-man commission to investigate the conduct of the Chief Superin-
tendent of the Royal'' Hong Kong Police Force, Peter Godber, who
sneaked out of Hong Kong while on suspension from duty during an
investigation of his suspected corrupt activities. The two Blair Kerr
reports and the ensuing public outcry led to the establishment of the
Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) in February
1974, with Jack Cater as Commissioner. Peter Godber was extradit-
ed from Britain and brought back to Hong Kong to face trial." Many
police officers were charged, many more resigned, and the force was
reorganized. Eventually, the Independent Commission Against Cor-
ruption Ordinance outlawed gift-taking by public officials.
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 143
Throughout the 1970s, the Christian Industrial Committee and
other church-related groups organized labour protests, and encour-
aged the development of a movement independent of the Communist
or Nationalist parties, resulting in a number of improvements to the
Labour Ordinance. A successful primary-school teachers' strike led to
the formation of the Professional Teachers' Union. This was followed
by a nurses' strike. Both white- and blue-collar unions raised the spec-
tre of a rightful challenge to arbitrary authority. Areas such as Chater
Garden, Victoria Park, the square outside Central Government Offices
and the side gate of Government House became well recognized sites
for public gatherings. While the ordinances against illegal associations
and assembly remained in the statute books, their application became
rarer. Demonstrators were met by police escorts who directed traffic,
and by government officials who received the petitions."
In many cases, significant concessions were made to the protesters.
Through this process, both Hong Kong society and government
became strengthened. Hong Kong changed from the colonial style of
government to one that was more responsive to the needs of the pop-
ulation in education and language. The civil service was upgraded
and social justice improved. The government, while retaining ulti-
mate political power, exercised it in a radically different manner by
the early 1970s.
It was my parents' view that since the 1970s, the governors of
Hong Kong were diplomats who no longer dictated to the people of
Hong Kong.
Father and Education
Father had always been a great supporter of education. Until 1969,
there were no scholarships for higher education in Hong Kong, and
students who were accepted into university but couldn't afford to pay
for their tuition had to approach private individuals for financial help.
Father was often approached with such requests. He kept letters from
students in his pocket so he wouldn't forget to look into mat-
ters for them. He would check into the entrance records of these
144 Building Bridges
students, and if the requests came from a worthy student, he or she
would be given financial support, consisting of money for tuition,
lodging and expenses. In fact, in his later years, he gave financial sup-
port to worthy students a year in advance, just in case something
should happen to him."
We were told by some students that he was the only wealthy per-
son in Hong Kong who bothered to answer their letters. Many of
these students have gone on to great careers, and even though Father
did not want any thanks, they never forgot him. Father's concern for
the education of the young didn't end at the personal level. Despite
being a Christian, he officiated at the opening ceremony of the Con-
fucius Hall Middle School in 1964. In striving to help a greater
number through the establishment of educational institutions, he
helped in activities such as raising funds for the Mong Kok Workers
Children's School, a school for the children of blue-collar workers.''
During the Cultural Revolution, Chi Chao, one of the daughters of
Chen and Mao, Mother's cousins, escaped to Hong Kong. She and a
classmate in her graduating class at Zhongshan Medical College in
China came in a boat with other refugees. Mother got a call from her
after she arrived in Hong Kong. My parents took it upon themselves
to take care of her education and sent her to the United States to learn
English. She later entered the school of medicine at Johns Hopkins
University. In spite of having to start her studies all over again in
another language, Chi Chao, to her great credit, completed her train-
ing in opthamology at Johns Hopkins, as her father had. She is now
the head of the immunopathology section of the National Eye Insti-
tute in Bethesda, Maryland,
When Father's secretary, Mabel Wu, retired in the early 1970s,
he asked Anna Li, a secretary at Western Trading, one of our sub-
sidiaries, to work for him. Anna told me that she was asked
because she was not like other secretaries who would read popular
magazines in their free time. On occasions when Father was at
Western Trading, he always saw Anna studying, but he didn't know
that she was studying for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign
Language) examination. She was then nineteen years old. She was
reluctant to work for Father because she said she was too young
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 145
and inexperienced. However, he convinced her that she could learn
a great deal from him.
It was just like Father to send his secretary to evening school at the
University of Hong Kong to learn English. Anna said she never
missed a class even when she didn't feel well, because, with Father's
connections at Hong Kong University, he would know if she missed
one. When Anna first worked for Father, she said she didn't sleep for
three months because she was so nervous. During the years she
worked for him she spent many hours crying, because he was very
direct, but she knew he always meant well. Anna was unsure of
speaking English on the phone, and since this was very necessary in
Father's office, he sent her to Oxford the following year for a six-
week summer course, again arranged through Hong Kong University.
The course was not to start until July, but Father paid for everything
in January. Anna's sister took her place as Father's secretary during
the time that she was away.
Father continued to help many students. One of them, Gloria Tarn,
wrote to Father during her two-year scholarship stay in England. She
wanted to go to medical school at Hong Kong University, but her
family couldn't afford it. When Father found out that she was a
scholarship student, and that her parents worked as reporters at Ta
Kung Pao, she was told that if she could get in, he would put her
through. Gloria became a gynaecologist. After Father died, Anna's
husband was helped by Gloria in finding employment, thanks to the
relationship that Father had established.
Gloria is at present Assistant Director of the Department of Health
in Hong Kong, During the H5N1 epidemic (chicken flu) in Hong
Kong in 1997-1998, it was her responsibility to negotiate with China
for the importation of healthy chickens to Hong Kong.
Anna was the one who knew how Father treated others, not only
because she saw him every day during the week, but because she pre-
pared the cheques for him to sign. Anna said, "I made out a cheque
for eight hundred dollars monthly for one of the watchmen for his
children's schooling because he had contracted tuberculosis. And
when it came to help for university students, your father always gave
them their allowance a year in advance."
146 Building Bridges
Anna married the son of Father's old friend Tsui Gang Bo. In the
late 1970s, when Anna had a family, Father would often let her use
our launch with her husband and children when he wasn't using it
himself.
Higher Education
After the end of the Second World War, and the civil war in China
that followed, the great influx of population'^ from China into Hong
Kong put heavy demands on the education system of the Colony, par-
ticularly higher education.
Up to the mid-1960s, there was only one officially recognized and
government-funded university in Hong Kong, the University of Hong
Kong. It was established in 1911 to serve as a centre for Sino-British
contact in the sphere of learning, and for the maintenance of good
relations with China. In other words, it was not intended to serve the
Hong Kong public. Before the Pacific War, the university served
mainly as an outpost of Western culture, admitting students from
Southeast Asia and China, as well as Hong Kong. In 1946, it was felt
that the greatly damaged university should be re-established because
of the need to maintain the British position and prestige in the Far
East. In 1948, when Father's friend Lindsay Ride became vice-chan-
cellor, Father became a member of the Court of the University.
By 1950, the government was becoming aware that the University
of Hong Kong should reflect the needs of local society, instead of
being an institution to uphold British prestige.
With the continual political turbulence in China, foreign academic
organizations withdrew from the mainland, and international cultur-
al activities were interrupted. Hong Kong was now in a position to
play an important role in Chinese and Western cultural contacts.
The demands of industrialization had created a need for higher
education in the Colony. Among the refugee population was a large
number of students from the Chinese middle schools who could no
longer return to China and wanted to continue their higher education
in Hong Kong. However, not only was the number of places available
at the University of Hong Kong inadequate, there was little chance
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 147
that any student from the Chinese middle schools could gain admis-
sion, since English was the language of instruction.
Governor Alexander Grantham appointed a special committee to
look into the problem, and the result was the Keswick Report. It was
the first public document to propose that higher education in Hong
Kong should be geared to the needs of the people. It also recom-
mended that the university remain the only institution to award
degrees. The government immediately allocated funding to the uni-
versity for the introduction of Chinese-language courses, beginning
with the 1952-1953 academic year. This move was widely supported
by the Senate of the university, but turned down by the Council.
There was an underlying fear that the introduction of Chinese-lan-
guage courses would eventually transform the university. The Council
said that in the postwar period, what the university needed most was
time for consolidation rather than a new direction in its development.
In 1953, Ivor Jennings and Douglas Logan, experts in British uni-
versity administration, were invited to advise on the development of
the university. The Jennings-Logan Report asserted that the Universi-
ty of Hong Kong should remain an English-speaking university. As
far as they were concerned, it was the government's job to fill the gap
between the university and the Chinese middle schools. In order to
prepare these graduates for admission into university, a special two-
year program was designed at Clementi Middle School. However,
this program did not solve the problem, because it could accommo-
date only a very limited number of students.
The education system in Hong Kong has always been divided into
Chinese and English. The students in the English system had access to
a complete education from primary to university levels, whereas the
students in the Chinese system could not go farther than middle
school. Before 1949, these students were able to continue their edu-
cation in mainland China. The Chinese system in Hong Kong
followed the curriculum prescribed by the Nationalist government in
China, and used textbooks produced in Shanghai. Many Chinese
schools in Hong Kong were associated with schools in Guangzhou.
However, after the establishment of the People's Republic of China,
Hong Kong students could no longer go to the mainland to complete
148 Building Bridges
their studies. This placed an added burden on the education system,
and the situation was exacerbated by the large influx of refugee stu-
dents from China.
A number of dedicated and experienced refugee scholars from
China took up the challenge. Driven by educational ideals, the mis-
sion of propagating Chinese culture and educating the young, as well
as the need to earn a living, scholars and professionals in various
fields used crude facilities and rented classrooms to establish so-called
"refugee colleges." According to a government survey in 1952, there
were more than thirty colleges of this kind, varying in standards and
the length of their programs. Nine of these were of higher standard,
offering four-year programs in arts and commerce. Among them were
New Asia College,^" Chung Chi College, and the forerunners of Unit-
ed College. These three were to emerge later as the Foundation
Colleges of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The survival of
these colleges depended greatly on international support, and in the
case of Chung Chi, the support of the Protestant church. The gov-
ernment granted the site of Ma Liu Shui Valley to Chung Chi College,
thanks to the persistence of Rev. R.O. Hall, Bishop of the Hong Kong
Anglican Church, It proved to be an important asset to the future
Chinese university.
By 1956, the degrees awarded by the colleges gained recognition
from many universities in America and Europe, some of which even
granted scholarships to the more outstanding students. Yet in Hong
Kong, the degrees were not recognized by the government for
employment or for further training. The private colleges received no
financial support, but were still subject to the control of the Educa-
tion Department and the Education Ordinance of 1952. So in 1956,
the three colleges banded together to strive for government recogni-
tion and support.
After consultation with the representatives of the three colleges,
Charles Long, Yale-in-Asia representative at New Asia and a trustee
of the College, sent a memorandum to DJ.S. Crozier, Director of Edu-
cation, on August 16, 1956. The memorandum began by pointing out
that the private colleges should not be governed by the Education
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 149
Ordinance of 1952, which was intended to apply to primary and sec-
ondary education in Hong Kong, and that special regulations should
be drawn up for colleges that were aspiring to university standards. It
went on to state that, as part of the Hong Kong education system, the
colleges could not depend entirely on the financial assistance of for-
eign missions, foundations and private donations. The government
should take responsibility for providing support for basic facilities and
recurrent expenses. The memorandum also said that under the exist-
ing government policy, thousands of intelligent young people were
leaving the Colony in search of higher education overseas or in Tai-
wan, thereby creating a potential loss in leadership. The
memorandum concluded that it would be difficult for the private col-
leges to provide the best contribution to tertiary education unless the
government offered support for them to develop university status for
awarding degrees. This became the first document in the government
file on the founding of The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
In January 1956, L.G. Morgan, Deputy Director of Education,
observed that the Chinese middle school could not but feel grievance
at a situation whereby the government provided $8 million annually
to the University of Hong Kong for the students from the Anglo-Chi-
nese schools, and made little or no provision for those from the
Chinese middle schools. In another memorandum by Morgan in
October the same year, five possible measures were proposed to meet
the overall needs of the Chinese secondary-school students. The most
significant proposal was "the establishment of a Chinese university
with its own charter and degree granting powers. '"i However, Mor-
gan's own recommendation still suggested that the University of
Hong Kong broaden its function and accept a greater responsibility
in meeting the needs of the community. In October 1956, there were
bloody riots caused by confrontations between pro-Nationalist and
pro-Communist political groups. This persuaded the government that
it could no longer ignore the demand for more post-secondary edu-
cation for its population." In January 1957, representatives of Chung
Chi, New Asia and United, the "refugee colleges," met with the Edu-
cation Department. Bishop Hall and Charles Long also attended the
150 Building Bridges
meeting, which ended without any decision. In February, the Chinese
Colleges Joint Council was established. After numerous meetings and
discussions, in August 1958, it was finally decided that another uni-
versity would be established in Hong Kong.
A New University
On June 2, 1959, the Hong Kong government officially announced
that it was prepared to establish a new university with Chinese as the
main language of instruction. Sir John Fulton, Professor of History
and a tutor at Oxford for many years (and incidentally, a former
teacher of Father's, as well as of Governor Sir Robert Black and Gov-
ernor Sir Murray Maclehose), was appointed as advisor to Governor
Sir Robert Black. In his 1959 report, The Development of Post- Sec-
ondary Colleges in Hong Kong, submitted to the Governor in March
1960, he stated that academic freedom, university autonomy, and
research and bi-cultural mission were especially important in shaping
the basic character of the future university."
According to Professor Ma Lin, vice-chancellor of The Chinese Uni-
versity from 1978 to 1987, Sir John Fulton, now Lord Fulton, was the
midwife of The Chinese University, and the good results of the delivery
were in many ways due to the close friendship between Sir John and
Father. On several occasions, Father flew to Yorkshire, where Sir John
lived in his retirement, to speak to him regarding The Chinese Univer-
sity, and Father could be very persuasive.-"*
Up to this point, the colleges had their roots in China and an early
association with American educational foundations and universities,
but they lacked British experience and connections. Sir John Fulton
brought with him the experience of three different British universities,
Oxford, Wales and Sussex. The introduction of new ideas was facili-
tated by the British Council and the University of Hong Kong in a series
of open forums and conferences held in 1960 and 1961. Following the
Fulton Report, a Provisional Council was formed composed of twenty
members: two government officials, the three presidents of the Col-
leges, the vice-chancellor of the University of Hong Kong, Lindsay
Ride, and prominent members from the community. The Council was
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 151
chaired by C.Y. Kwan, with Father as the vice-chairman. The Council
promptly adopted the name The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Father had the added responsibility of being the chairman of the Cam-
pus Planing Committee as well as the chairman of the Tender Board.
From then on, until the end of his life, Father spent a great deal of his
time and energy promoting the establishment and growth of The Chi-
nese University of Hong Kong. He considered it to be one of his
"children." Prof. Ma Lin told me that without Father's dedication, The
Chinese University wouldn't be the way it is today.''
It was to the credit of the Council that the magnificent site of three
hundred acres adjacent to Chung Chi College at Ma Liu ShuP was
secured from the government. The area was able not only to accom-
modate the university, but also provided ample space for future
expansion. The Chinese University of Hong Kong Ordinance, togeth-
er with its Statutes, was passed in the Legislative Council and came
into effect in September 1963. On October 17, 1963, the governor, in
his capacity as chancellor, officiated at the inauguration ceremony.
On October 9, 1964, the first meeting of the Campus Planning
Committee was held in Father's office in Edinburgh House. These
meetings continued to be held in Father's office at different locations
until 1977, when the venue changed to the Lee Gardens Hotel.
Father served on this committee and on the Council until he passed
away in 1983.
Being a civil engineer, Father was in the perfect position to oversee
the buildings to be erected on campus. The work was monumental. The
project was similar to building a mini-city on hills that had to be ter-
raced, and the mud and rocks were transported to the opposite side of
Tolo Harbour for the construction of the Plover Cove reservoir." More-
over, except for the campus of Chung Chi College, the Committee was
working with raw land, most of which was without infrastructure, such
as roads, water and sewer connections. In the minutes of the meeting of
1966, it was mentioned that sea water had to be used for flushing
because it was not clear whether the government would be piping water
from the Sha Tin Treatment Works within the next two years. In the
minutes of 1967, it was noted that planting on steep hilly sections had
to be done immediately because the slopes were too steep to be turfed.
152 Building Bridges
The fact that Father had so many friends in the government was a
great advantage for the university. Father's friend Szeto Wai was hired
as the architect and Plover Cove Engineers were the engineers for
the university. In the initial stage, Father asked Szeto to travel to the
best universities in the world to learn from them. In the mid-1960s,
Szeto visited fifteen of the best and most beautiful campuses in the
world before he designed the campus for The Chinese University of
Hong Kong."
As the vice-chairman of the Council, Father would chair the meet-
ings once or twice a year. Father had a reputation of chairing
meetings that were short and efficient. They always started on time,
and were seldom longer than forty-five minutes. Once, a Council
member arrived ten minutes late, and by the time he sat down, his
part of the meeting was over"
On my parents' visits to Toronto, I often heard Father mention the
importance of establishing a Chinese university in Hong Kong for the
Chinese. Father not only worked very hard for the university in deal-
ing with the government and getting the new buildings built, he also
donated a great deal of money to its foundation. His greatest show of
faith was when my brother Christopher attended the university and
graduated from it. When Christopher lived in residence, he told
Father that the mattress in the residence was uncomfortable. So,
Father bought new mattresses for the entire residence!
At the beginning of 1983, Father wanted to experiment with the
reproduction of purified yeast used in the production of Chinese rice
wine, which many Chinese use for medicinal purpose. He asked Pro-
fessor Ma Lin to see if it could be reproduced in the laboratory at the
university. The experiment was successful, and Father planned to
experiment with fermentation at home. Father was always interested
in different medicines.
Father was so concerned about the well-being of The Chinese Uni-
versity of Hong Kong that he treated it as one of his "children" in his
will. Mother not only continued to be a great supporter of the uni-
versity after Father died, but she also considered it as one of her
"children." And because of Father's influence, different members of
the Lee family continue to be very generous to the university.
From Turbulence To Reform: A Vision For Higher Education 153
My favourite artifact from Grandfather's time, an ivory mammoth
tusk carved with the story of the Three Kingdoms, is proudly dis-
played in the museum at the university.
Shortly after Father's death. Mother established the R.C. Lee
Memorial Gold Medal in Surgery, to be awarded to the best student
in the final year in the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Surgery.
In September 1987, the Council at the university decided to name
the Science Centre Lecture Hall Complex the "R.C. Lee Lecture
Hall" as a perpetual memorial to Father. In October 1988, The Chi-
nese University of Hong Kong awarded Mother an honorary degree
for her role as a public figure in Hong Kong, and for her continuous
support of the university.
11
The Japanese
Connection
For obvious reasons, after the Second World War, it was very dif-
ficult for Japanese businesses to get established in Hong Kong.
Although Father had been in the resistance during the war, when
peace came, he felt that everyone should put the past aside. He
believed that Japan would prosper, and he wanted to build long-term
relationships in order to bring prosperity to the people of Hong Kong.
As a progressive thinker, Father was always invited to the Saunter-
ing meetings, started by a Chinese scholar who had attended Waseda
University in Tokyo. It was a study group, a monthly dinner gather-
ing of about twelve top Japanese businessmen in Hong Kong.' Father
would always invite the group back. He was held in such high esteem
that Japanese businessmen, and even the Consul-General of Japan,^
would pay him a courtesy visit whenever they were in Hong Kong.
When the Japanese Club was established in 1955, Father was one
of the first to offer assistance.- The Club was originally located in the
Victoria Hotel, with 106 corporate and private members. By Novem-
ber 1996, the membership had increased to more than 25,000. Aside
from dining facilities, the activities available included language
instructions in Chinese and English, doll-making, Chinese painting
and calligraphy/ And throughout the history of the Club, it has been
located mostly in buildings owned by the Lee family. Starting in the
1970s, my parents hosted a dinner at the Lee Gardens Hotel for all
154
The Japanese Connection 155
the Japanese executives in Hong Kong, once a year, in order for them
to make friends with members of the Chinese business community.
By the late 1960s, it became absolutely necessary for the survival
of Japanese financial institutions to establish Hong Kong subsidiaries
in conjunction with leading Hong Kong business people. Father had
been invited to be a partner by different Japanese enterprises but he
made it his policy not to get involved." However, he viewed his
involvement in education quite differently.
The Japanese School
Father played an important role in the establishment of a Japanese
school for Japanese children whose parents lived in Hong Kong. He
helped the school acquire government permits to operate as a foreign
school, and negotiated and sought approvals from the Departments
of Education, Public Works, Health and Fire. According to a report
sent to the Japanese government from the Consulate-General of
Japan, without Father's help, the process would have been difficult
and lengthy.
When Father first heard of the plans to establish a Japanese school,
he suggested that it be located in the space in Tower Court, on Hysan
Avenue, one of the buildings owned by the Lee family, which was
about to be vacated by the Hong Kong Education Department/
However, the preparatory committee for the establishment of the
school had not yet been formed,** and no action could be taken.
Fifth Uncle, who looked after rentals in the Lee Hysan Estate Com-
pany, had many inquiries about the space, but Father stubbornly
insisted that it be held for the opening of the Japanese school, with-
out any rent or deposit. It stood vacant for half a year. In January
1966, the Japanese government allocated a subsidiary budget for the
Hong Kong Japanese School, and only then was the school able to
pay rent. An official tenancy agreement was then signed. On May 10，
1966, the Japanese school,'' located on the second and the third floors
of Tower Court,'" opened with seventy students. The following day,
Fifth Uncle showed up at the school to see Ichiro Fujita, the princi-
pal, to return the cheque. Father had ordered that the rent from
156 Building Bridges
January to March was not to be accepted. Everyone at the school was
overwhelmed by his generous spirit."
Father continued to take great interest in the Japanese School and
gave advice to Ichiro Fujita. The school opened extension class-
rooms in the Ling Ying Building,'- and on January 24， 1976, a
primary school opened on Blue Pool Road. The school kept expand-
ing, and the junior high school opened on Braemar Hill Road on
October 23, 1982. Father was their special guest at each of the
opening ceremonies. At the opening ceremony of the Braemar Hill
Road school, Ichiro Fujita made a speech in front of all the students
and guests, referring to the cherished friendship between himself
and Father, expressing his heartfelt and sincere gratitude, and intro-
ducing Father as the "true benefactor and patron of the Hong Kong
Japanese School.'"'
On March 12, 1969, Father was decorated with the Order of the
Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, by the Japanese
Emperor. The third-highest Order in Japan, it was established in
1888." The ceremony was held at the official residence of the Con-
sul-General of Japan, Akira Okada, at 24 Po Shan Road in Hong
Kong. Father was proud of this award, despite the fact that it took
several years to get permission from the Queen of England to wear
and use the name of the Order. One of the conditions imposed was
that its name must always be given in full, to prevent confusion with
British Orders."
Japan and China
By the 1960s, the Japanese government wished to re-establish
relations with the government of China. Since direct contact was not
possible at the time, the responsibility was given to the Consul-Gen-
eral of Japan in Hong Kong, Akira Okada, a close friend of Father's.
In his book Mizutori Gaiko Hiwa (The Secret Story of Mizutori's
Diplomacy) Okada mentioned that when he and his wife were
guests of my parents on our launch on August 17， 1969, he and
Father discussed the possibility of working towards the resumption
The Japanese Connection 157
of relations between Japan and China. At that time, Father offered
help through his friends Zhou Enlai and Liao Chengzhi in Beijing.
On September 10, 1971, Consul- General Okada met with Japan-
ese Prime Minister Sato to discuss the relationship with China. The
prime minister told Okada that Japan was willing to accept the Chi-
nese view that Taiwan was a province of China, and that Japan
would not object to China's entry into the United Nations. However,
he said, China must stop interfering with the internal politics of
Japan. Also, although Taiwan's membership in the United Nations
was considered temporary, Japan would not ask for its resignation in
the immediate future. The Japanese government needed advice on
how to proceed towards the normalization of relations with China,
since at this time, the Chinese government would not receive anyone
sent by the Japanese government. Prime Minister Sato asked Okada
to seek help from his friends in Hong Kong to reach the right con-
tacts in Beijing. Okada was given permission to go to Beijing if
necessary to carry out his mission. This was so important in the agen-
da of the Japanese government that he was asked to report to the
prime minister directly, bypassing the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Consul-General Okada returned to Hong Kong on September 14
to proceed with this mission. One of the friends he might have turned
to for help was P.Y, Tang, who had been a classmate of Zhou Enlai's
at Nankai University, but unfortunately, Tang had died on June 17.
Father was on his priority list, not only because of his contacts in
China, but also because of the friendship between him and Okada.
However, Father was away from Hong Kong for a few weeks, so
Okada turned to Father's cousin, Uncle Quo Wai of Hang Seng Bank.
Uncle Quo Wai knew Consul-General Okada through the bank, but
he had connections with China only through Father.'" The two men
met the following day. Uncle Quo Wai immediately contacted
Father's good friend Fei Yiming of Ta Kung Pao, who relayed the
message to Beijing.
On September 16, Zhou Enlai met with Hide Kawasaki, a member
of the Diet, who was visiting China, and told him that Japan had to
recognize the People's Republic as the rightful government of China,
158 Building Bridges
and accept the fact that Taiwan was part of China. If those conditions
were met, he would welcome an official visit from Japan. Consul-
General Okada wondered whether this reaction had been due to the
contact Uncle Quo Wai had made, but he doubted that China would
have responded so quickly. When he and Uncle Quo Wai spoke again
on September 17， the latter said that it would not be difficult to
arrange a meeting between a Chinese official and the Consul-Gener-
al in Hong Kong, but an official meeting with the Japanese Foreign
Office would depend on Beijing. He suggested that Prime Minister
Sato personally write a proposal and have it passed on to Premier
Zhou through unofficial channels by one of the many Japanese visi-
tors to Beijing. On September 20, Consul- General Okada telephoned
the prime minister's office, and learnt that the prime minister was not
planning to write a personal letter to Premier Zhou as yet.
The following day, it was rumoured in Hong Kong that Chairman
Mao had died, and the October 1 National Celebration would be can-
celled. It was already in the news that Japan would bring up the
question of China's representation in the United Nations. With all the
recent events, Consul-General Okada wondered whether an answer
from the Chinese government would be forthcoming by September 23.
On the evening of September 22, 1971, Consul-General Okada
received an urgent call from Uncle Quo Wai, apologizing that due to
an urgent matter, Beijing would not be able to meet with a representa-
tive of the Japanese government to discuss normalization of relations.
As it turned out, the urgent matter was the Lin Biao incident.
Lin Biao was the originator of the "Little Red Book" of Mao's say-
ings, Quotations from Chairman Mao. In 1965, he produced a
pamphlet, "Long Live the Victory of the People's War," suggesting
that China could win over the world by mobilizing the people of
backward countries just as Mao had mobilized the poor peasants of
China. In the Ninth Party Congress in April 1969, he was named sole
vice-chairman and Mao's official heir. However, by April 1970, Lin
Biao and his wife, Ye Qun, detected Mao's changed attitude towards
them and they plotted against Mao.''
On September 14, 1971, the Chinese ambassador to Ulan Bator
was summoned to the Mongol Foreign Office early in the morning,
The Japanese Connection 159
and was told that a Chinese aircraft (transporting Lin Biao, Ye Qun
and Lin Liguo) had violated Mongol airspace and had crashed at
2:00 a.m. the day before.
The news of this case was suppressed for months in China, and it
took a year before it was disclosed to the foreign press. Even up till
spring 1972, no one knew of this incident, and the Japanese press
continued to mention Lin Biao as if he were still alive."
On October 8, 1971, Uncle Quo Wai asked Consul- General
Okada if he would like to meet Fei Yiming of Ta Kung Pao at the
Australian National Day reception on October 25. The two were
introduced on an unofficial basis. Fei Yiming confirmed everything
that had been said and done by Uncle Quo Wai, and requested
patience from the Japanese government in awaiting the next step
from Beijing. On the same day, the United Nations admitted China as
a member, and Japan's support of Taiwan's membership failed.
Unfortunately, due to the Lin Biao incident, Okada was not able to
complete his assignment of mending relations between China and
Japan during his term of office. Uncle Quo Wai was sure that if he
had been able to complete his assignment, Okada would have been
named the first Japanese ambassador to China since the Second
World War"
Yamaichi Securities
In the early 1960s, Father re-established a friendship with his box-
ing friend from his Oxford days, Konosuke Koike, and they visited
each other in Hong Kong and Tokyo. Koike was the eldest son of the
founder of Yamaichi Securities,-" and the chairman of the company.
In 1964, Yamaichi encountered financial difficulties and asked for
help from major Japanese banks headed by the Industrial Bank of
Japan (IBJ). Koike resigned and Teru Hidaka from the Industrial
Bank of Japan came to Yamaichi as president. By May 1965, the
company's financial position had deteriorated further, and it sought
more help from the Bank of Japan and the Central Bank.
At the beginning of 1970, when the situation had improved and
Yamaichi Securities wanted to open a company in Hong Kong,
160 Building Bridges
Yamaichi took advantage of the friendship between Father and the for-
mer chairman, Konosuke Koike. Officers from Yamaichi paid Father a
visit with a letter from his old friend Koike requesting help in the set-
ting up of the Hong Kong company. On hearing that his friend had
taken the responsibility for mismanagement in the company and had
resigned from the chairmanship, Father was sympathetic. He remem-
bered his own experiences as the eldest son, and the financial difficulties
our family had experienced when Grandfather was murdered. Father
said that if by agreeing to join the board of Yamaichi (Hong Kong), he
could help his friend, he would do so gladly. He immediately gave sug-
gestions for possible contacts as directors and shareholders.-^
Yamaichi International (H.K.) Ltd. opened its office in Hong Kong
in July 1971. Teru Hidaka was named chairman and Father was the
deputy chairman." Konosuke Koike became an honorary advisor.
Father brought many influential people into the company as direc-
tors, and introduced many important clients.
August 16， 1971, was the date set for the cocktail reception at the
Mandarin Hotel, celebrating the opening of the Hong Kong company.
The weather was dreadful and the typhoon signal was up. By
evening, the cross-harbour ferry had stopped running. However, in
spite of the weather, many distinguished guests attended, and
Yamaichi credited Father's influence for the fact that so many people
made the effort.-'
Shinichi Shiraishi,''' the sales manager of Yamaichi International
(H.K.) Ltd." came to know Father because it was his responsibility to
increase business in Hong Kong. He met Father from time to time to
explain the situation of the Tokyo stock market and to report the
business results of the Hong Kong company. Father was pleased to
see the business growing steadily, and was always very happy to see
his old friend Koike at the shareholders' meetings which took place
every July in Hong Kong. Shiraishi noticed how Father always paid a
great deal of attention to Koike and his wife, even though Teru Hida-
ka was the "big boss."-*'
By 1982, Yamaichi Securities wanted to become a wholly owned
company. Officers from the company consulted Father as to the pos-
sibilities of buying back the shares in the Yamaichi International
The Japanese Connection 161
(H.K.) Ltd. With his usual wish to help others, Father asked them to
leave the matter with him. He proceeded to contact the Hong Kong
directors and shareholders and made arrangements for the company
to buy back the shares. Yamaichi International (H.K.) Ltd. became a
wholly owned company, and the board and shareholders felt greatly
indebted to Father.-"
Mother told me that the Causeway Bay area became very prosper-
ous because of Father's Japanese friends. Causeway Bay is in the area
where Grandfather bought East Point Hill, which his descendants
have subsequently developed. It is also where many members of the
Lee family lived from the beginning of the 1950s to the mid-1980s,
including my own family. There are many Japanese businesses locat-
ed in the area. When the first Japanese department store, Daimaru,
opened in Causeway Bay in November 1960, a Chinese managing
director was needed in addition to his Japanese counterpart, so
Father introduced his friend Liu Huo Yan from Taiwan, who spoke
Japanese, to the post.-- Sogo Department Store opened its first store
in Causeway Bay in May 1985 and has since opened many branches
all over Hong Kong. The well-known up-scale department store Mit-
sukoshi, the Japanese Club and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce
are all located in Causeway Bay.
Father often lent a hand to these businesses when they opened in
Hong Kong. At the Mitsukoshi (Hong Kong) opening, he took part
in the ribbon-cutting ceremony. In his letter of thanks, Shigeru
Okada, President of Mitsukoshi Limited, wrote:
... I firmly believe that it was indeed in virtue of your per-
sonality and through your courtesy that we could have the
notables and the potentates of all spheres of social activities
in Hong Kong and varied V.I.P.'s at those occasions, and
herein I express my sincere gratitude for it?
By the 1980s, Japanese investments became one of the major eco-
nomic forces in the colony. Father's gift for making friends and
building relationships had helped to bring prosperity to Hong Kong.
During the Asian economic crisis at the end of 1997, Yamaichi
Securities, the fourth-largest securities company in Japan, went bankrupt.
162 Building Bridges
The Hong Kong operations, Yamaichi International (H.K.) Ltd., was
sold to Core Pacific Group,;** a Taiwanese conglomerate, at just under
$88 million, which was the net value of the business. The offer was
considered a good deal by Yamaichi advisors, given the tough Asian
market conditions. The company was valuable because Core Pacific
wanted to capitalize on Yamaichi International's strong business pres-
ence in mainland China. The company would be renamed Core
Pacific Yamaichi.
In a letter to me, S. Shiraishi, former vice-president of Yamaichi
wrote:
Since YIH (Yamaichi International Hong Kong) started
business in 1971 with great help of your father and your
family members, YIH has established its name not only in
Hong Kong but also in Asia in general during last 27 years.
The CO. has favorable financial conditions and many capa-
ble and dedicating local staff.
YIH is very active in handling China related stocks in the
last few years. 31
Given the circumstances, Father would have been pleased to know
that the purchase agreement with Core Pacific included keeping all
121 employees of the Hong Kong operation.'-
12
The
Chinese Patriot
The leaders of China called Father a patriot, meaning he was loyal
to the Chinese government. But I believe that patriotism meant
something different to Father. He was patriotic to the Chinese people,
irrespective of the governments they live under.
The letter Father wrote in his youth to his school in Hong Kong
shows that he had always been proud of being Chinese, and at the
same time concerned with the state of affairs in China. I became
aware of this by the end of the 1940s, for by then I was old enough
to observe how he conducted his life. He tried very hard to alleviate
human suffering both in Hong Kong and in China. He was only one
man, but he believed that one man could make a difference.
Mother told me one day that when she first met Father, he spoke
English with an Oxford accent, but later (by the time I understood
English), he spoke it with a Chinese accent. She was sure this was
intentional. Most people would have flaunted their Oxford accent
for the rest of their lives, but not Father. Because of his pride in Hong
Kong, for a number of years Father arranged, at his own expense,
for a number of students from Oxford to broaden their experience
by practical studies in Hong Kong.'
Father had no interest in politics, and so was effective in helping
many. There were times in his life, because of his friendship with the
leaders of China, he was asked if he was a Communist. His answer
163
164 Building Bridges
was, "No, I am not. Even if I were to want to join the party, I don't
qualify, as I'm a capitalist."
After the Second World War, the civil war between the Nationalists
under Chiang Kaishek and the Communists under Mao Zedong began
in earnest in China. In a way, Father retreated to Hong Kong. He
looked upon Hong Kong as a Chinese colony under a period of British
management, and believed he could be just as useful in working
towards the improvement of the life of the population there. From then
on, he concentrated on Hong Kong, but he never forgot his roots in
China, and waited until he could be of help to China again. At the
same time, he always acted as a responsible citizen of the world.
Every year, on October 1, the People's Republic of China celebrat-
ed National Day. In the 1950s, Father was the first and only person
(non-Communist) in Hong Kong to receive an invitation to attend the
celebration.- As far as he was concerned, not only were his friend-
ships important to him, but also his special and unique closeness to
the leaders of China, which could bring about a better life for the
people of Hong Kong. He realized how dependent Hong Kong was
on China, not only as an entrepot, but for its food and water supply.
Solving the Water Shortage
As the refugee population in Hong Kong increased, the water sup-
ply became insufficient. Hong Kong depended on rainwater collected
in reservoirs during the rainy season and although the number of reser-
voirs was increased, supply could not keep up with demand. Rationing
of water began in the 1950s, but that was only a temporary solution to
the problem. Water was supplied a few hours per day, then every other
day, and then once every three days. The decrease in rainfall in the early
1960s turned the water shortage into a crisis.
As always, when Hong Kong had a problem. Father regarded it as
his own responsibility. His concerns and public appeals to save water
were constantly reported in the newspapers. While Father appealed to
the public to save water, he also explained to the population the
reasons for the shortage and that the government was doing its best
The Chinese Patriot 165
to solve the problem.'' In fact, the only major long-term solution to
the problem was to obtain water from China. Due to the fact that
Beijing did not recognize the legitimacy of British presence in Hong
Kong, they would not negotiate with London over Hong Kong issues.
This meant that the Chinese in Hong Kong had to negotiate with the
Chinese government. The job of negotiating fell on Father, who was
the only person in Hong Kong who had access to the leaders in
China.
Xinhua News Agency, also known as the New China News
Agency, had established a branch in Hong Kong in 1947 and was the
unofficial Chinese consulate. In the early 1950s, the director was Lian
Weilin, a good friend of Father's. The issue of obtaining water from
China was discussed and Lian was the go-between, with Father and
Sir Tsun Nin Chau negotiating for Hong Kong, and Tao Zhou, the
First Secretary, and Chen Yu, the Governor of Guangdong province,
for China/
In May 1963, Premier Zhou Enlai allowed tankers to go up the
Pearl River daily to supply water to Hong Kong. At the same time,
the Chinese government ordered a feasibility study for transporting
water to Hong Kong from the East River in Guangdong province, in
order to solve future problems of water shortage in Hong Kong.
While Father was in the midst of discussions, there was fear that
Hong Kong would run out of water completely. On May 31， 1963,
Father made a public appeal to save water, while he explained that
transporting water from China was only a temporary measure and
could not solve the problem completely. He also mentioned that talks
with China were under way to bring about a permanent solution/
The shortage became so severe that it was announced, starting
June 1, 1963, that water could only be supplied for four hours every
four days in the heavily populated areas, and three hours every four
days in the less populated areas."
On April 23, 1964, agreements were signed between the Hong
Kong government and the Water Works Department of Guangdong,
and work began on the building of conduits from the East River to
reservoirs in Shenzhen., From there water could be piped to Hong Kong.
166 Building Bridges
In January 1965， Father was interviewed by Wah Kin Yat Po about
his hopes for the new year. Besides wishing for the prosperity of the
citizens of Hong Kong, he looked forward to the completion of the
water project, scheduled for March 1 of that year/
The project was finished in January 1965 and by March it started
to supply water to Hong Kong, 60 million cubic metres" per year. By
summer, two-thirds of the water consumed in Hong Kong was from
the East River.'" My parents were the only people from Hong Kong
who attended the opening of the facilities in Shenzhen. Sir Tsun Nin
Chau had wanted to attend but was not allowed by the British Gov-
ernment." No one could have stopped Father.
However, the water supply to Hong Kong was interrupted during
the riots of 1967. That summer, the rainfall was below normal. The
agreement with China was for 15,000 million gallons plus an addi-
tional 1,800 million gallons requested by the Water Authority, to be
used between October 1 and June 30. By the beginning of June, this
amount had already been drawn from the system in Hong Kong. By
June 28, a request for an additional 2,000 million gallons for the
month of July had still not been answered by China. Until the request
was accepted, Mr, Michael Wright, Director of Public Works,
announced that the supply of water would have to be reduced from
eight hours each day at the beginning of June to four hours on alter-
nate days, starting on June 29.'' Under the existing agreement with
China, the new water supply would not begin until October 1.
By July 1967, the water shortage was so severe that supply to the
population was further reduced to four hours every four days, start-
ing July 13.13 No one really knows why the request for more water
from China was not answered. One can only guess that, because of
the turmoil caused by the Cultural Revolution, the Chinese govern-
ment was in no condition to look after the needs of the population of
Hong Kong.
By the end of the 1960s, life had returned to normal. There were
two subsequent phases of redevelopment of the water supply from
the East River. The first one started in 1976 and finished in 1978, and
a second phase started in 1981, increasing the supply to 660 million
The Chinese Patriot 167
cubic metres" of water to Hong Kong annually, which solved the
water supply problem for Hong Kong once and for all.
Between Hong Kong and China
During the 1960s, Father's relationship with China was viewed by
some with jealousy and suspicion. Although he helped solve the
water crisis," some people accused Father of negotiating for the ben-
efit of China." The colonial government needed him when it was
necessary, but they also wanted him to stay away from China. That
caused a great deal of conflict between Governor David Trench
(1964-1971) and Father. Father had built long-term relationships
with people in China and he was loyal to his friends. In the case of
the water crisis, if it hadn't been for China's help, Hong Kong would
have ceased to be a viable place in which to live.
Father believed that as a Chinese, he had a right to visit friends and
relatives in China as long as he was allowed into the country. After all,
he was a free man. When the Hong Kong government demanded that
he stop his visits to China and that Mother stop visiting her relatives, I
can imagine the fireworks. Father had no respect for Governor Trench,
whom he believed was not qualified for the position of governor.'- He
believed that Trench used the Chinese and at the same time treated
them badly. David K.P. Li, who used to see Father at least once a week,
told me that Father, while pro-British, was fed up with the abuses of the
colonial government towards the Chinese. Arguments ensued, and
Father decided to resign from all his voluntary positions with the Hong
Kong government.'-
Up to that point, Father had been expected by everyone to be the
next in line to be knighted by the Queen. Mother had bought a beau-
tiful blue vase which was decorated with a deer, a pine tree, and a
monkey holding a peach, signifying officialdom, wealth and long life,
in preparation for the celebration of the event. Then Father gave her
the news that he had resigned.
When my parents returned from a trip to Madagascar on June 13,
1965, they were met at the airport by a number of unofficial members
168 Building Bridges
of the Legislative Council. A letter accepting Father's resignation was
handed to him by Y.K. Kan" By 1966, Father had resigned all his vol-
untary positions with the Hong Kong government. His resignations
meant that he was no longer given any official recognition for any-
thing he did, but it didn't change his desire to help the people of Hong
Kong. From then on, he represented himself instead of the Hong Kong
government.
When David K.P. Li went to London subsequently to inquire why
Father hadn't received a knighthood after all that he had done for
Hong Kong, he was told that Father had been blacklisted by certain
members of the colonial government. -°
Father built good relations with the People's Republic of China,
not only because he had many old friends in the government, but also
because he knew very well that Hong Kong had to return to China
one day, and he wanted to pave the road for a smooth transition. As
he told me many times, "There must not be any fighting. The transi-
tion must be peaceful and beneficial to everyone." The leaders in
Beijing knew of Father's sincerity and had great respect for him.
Father believed that the people of Hong Kong had to rule Hong Kong
one day, and that final decisions about their future could not be left
to London or Beijing.'' Unfortunately, he didn't live to see the peace-
ful change of sovereignty of Hong Kong.
Father and Uncle Quo Wai were the first people from Hong Kong
to know about Deng Xiaoping's policy of "one country, two systems"
and his fifty-year plan for Hong Kong. On one of Father's trips to
China with Uncle Quo Wai in the early 1970s, Father was called into
a room to be given special information. He said, "Quo- Wai, you
come in too. I want you to hear what's being said."" Father was given
the assurance that business would continue as usual after the change
of sovereignty of Hong Kong.
When my parents visited us in Toronto at the beginning of the
1970s, Father and I had a discussion about China. It was his view
that China had had its share of bad times for the last two centuries,
but that the twenty-first century belonged to China and I would live
to see China strong again. I realized how very concerned he had
always been about China and the Chinese people.
The Chinese Patriot 169
Father had always maintained that there was a great difference
between the relationship of the governments of Hong Kong and China,
and that of the population of Hong Kong with China. In a speech
Father gave in June 1982, in Frankfurt, Germany, at the International
Conference on the Economic Opportunities in Hong Kong, he said:
There was no doubt that the strained relationship between
the Hong Kong Government and the Government of
China, more apparent than real, was largely due to the
short-sightedness of the formei- Colonial Cadet Officers
and to the policy of the then Colonial Office in London,
but not so between the Chinese of Hong Kong and the Chi-
nese Government.
He was referring to the 1960s. He noted improvements under gov-
ernor Sir Murray Maclehose in the 1970s:
The relationship between China and Hong Kong started to
improve steadily during his term of office. This improve-
ment is due, in large measure, to his foresight and great
administrative ability.-^
The Chinese Connections
丁 he 1970s were the years Father helped to build a bridge between
Hong Kong and China. Having made the break with the colonial
government, he could no longer be criticized by the Hong Kong gov-
ernment for his actions. Those were the years when business people
in Hong Kong did not invest in or travel to China. In fact, mainland
China was a place to be avoided.
Because of Father's wish for a smooth transition, dialogue was nec-
essary. In order to help bring the two sides (Hong Kong and China)
together, Father held a spring feast every Chinese New Year, inviting
all the prominent members of the business community in Hong Kong,
members of the Hong Kong government, as well as his foreign friends
who might wish to make friends with China, to meet representatives
of China. Because of Father's prestige, everyone came. By so doing, he
was able to build friendships that continue to bring prosperity to all.
170 Building Bridges
Xinhua News Agency would have liked to contact those in the
business circles as well as the Legislative and Executive Councillors,
but as the director of Xinhua in the 1970s, Lian Weilin, told me, "If
I had sent out invitations, no one would turn up. But when your
father did, everyone came."" Father's spring feast at the Lee Gardens
Hotel was like a Who's Who in the colony. It became one of the most
important annual events in Hong Kong.
At Father's spring feast, spouses were not included. It was general-
ly known to be a party for men only, although women councillors
were invited. Anna, Father's secretary, was required to help, but she
had to leave before dinner started. There was a story in a celebrity
magazine about how a foreign friend of Father's arrived in Hong
Kong for the party with his wife, only to be told at the Lee Gardens
Hotel that spouses were not invited. He had to take his wife back to
the hotel and return to the party.'-
One year we happened to be in Hong Kong when Father held his
spring feast. Neville was invited, but I was not. Father asked me to
take our boys to see the magic show at the Lee Theatre. Even though
Father always thought of this as an event for men only, after he died,
Mother, who had never taken part in the spring feast, continued to
hold it for him for a few more years. If Father only knew!
Like all Chinese, Father frequently went back to our ancestral vil-
lage, which was also the first area in China he helped after the war. The
first thing he did in Garlieu village was to give money for the building
of a new bridge over the river on which he had travelled as a child,
when he and Grandfather brought Great-grandfather's body in a boat
for burial. When I went back to the village with my family in the early
1990s, that was the first thing the villagers were proud to show us.
During our visit, we were also shown the school buildings and the
playground that Father and Second Uncle had donated money to
build. We were taken to a small hat factory which Father had helped
the villagers to start. It was a very large room, clean, well lit and well
organized. By the time we visited the village the second time, the hats
they were making included well-known labels from overseas. The vil-
lagers were proud of their achievements.
The Chinese Patriot 171
Over the years, Father and his brothers helped build hospitals and
schools in the city of Sunwui. By so doing, they were acting like gen-
erations of Chinese in the past by not forgetting where they came
from, and offering help to those in their ancestral home town. In hon-
our of Father, Mother was presented with a gold key in 1992 to the
city of Sunwui, making her an honorary citizen. In 1993, Mother was
also presented with a gold key to the city of Hoiping, where Great-
grandfather had originally come from.
Because of my parents' frequent travels in China, Father was able
to talk knowledgeably about the country. He Mingsi of the Xinhua
News Agency, who often accompanied my parents to China, was
impressed by how inquisitive a traveller Father was. He was interest-
ed not only in the development of the cities, but also in the outlying
areas of the vast country.
In 1977, my parents went on an extensive trip through western
China, visiting sights in Gansu province and Xinjiang Autonomous
Region. The following January, Father gave a talk to the Chinese
Bankers' Association. He showed, complete with slides, not only the
sights, including the hydro-electric plants, but he also brought pieces
of rocks from the area.-^ Father always had a special interest in the
beauty of rocks. His enthusiasm in everything he did was infectious.
When my parents visited us in 1978, they told us about their trip
to western China and gave us photographs of their visit. The one I
liked best was a picture of Father on a dromedary. My parents had
been invited to dine with the local chieftains in Uriimqi, Xinjiang
Autonomous Region, who had served them their best. It was the first
time they had ever eaten fresh fat choy, generally known as hair veg-
etable because it looks like hair. It is always used in dishes for
Chinese New Year for good luck, because fat choy sounds the same
as prosperity in Cantonese. The majority of Chinese don't know
where it comes from, and generally presume that it is a seaweed. Fat
choy is actually a desert plant. Being special guests, my parents were
also served the local delicacy ― sheep's eyes. Mother said, "When I
saw the head on my plate with those eyes staring at me, I immedi-
ately felt sick!"
172 Building Bridges
Father also promoted cultural exchanges. In 1968, during an exca-
vation in the Man Chen District in Hebei province, the Tomb
belonging to Prince Ching (Jing) of Chung Shan (Zhongshan) (per-
sonal name Liu Sheng) of the Western-Han dynasty (206 B.C. - A.D.
24) was discovered. 厂 Inside was the body of a princess dressed in a
garment of jade threaded together by gold filaments. This spectacular
garment, 188 cm long, had never been shown outside of China. In
1978, Fei Yiming of Ta Kung Pao wanted to put on an exhibition in
Hong Kong of this jade garment, together with other funerary objects,
such as a gold-plated bronze Zhang Hsin Palace lamp from the same
tomb, and bronze horses and chariots from a tomb from the East Han
dynasty excavated in 1969.-- Fei was not able to organize the exhibi-
tion and asked Father for help. Father asked Henry Fok to hold the
exhibition in Star House and organized the insurance, security and
ticket sales. It was a large collection which occupied three floors. It
was the first time such an exhibition had ever been mounted in Hong
Kong, and the attendance was overwhelming. At the same time, it
gave China an archaeological presence in the colony?
It was not uncommon for Chinese government officials to send
special gifts, such as fruit, from a particular area of China, to Father
through Xinhua News Agency. What they sent was often not avail-
able commercially in Hong Kong, and Father was always proud of
these presents. During Chinese New Year, it would be peonies and
kumquat plants and small tangerines. This show of respect continued
towards Mother after Father died.
One day in the 1970s, a call came from Xinhua News Agency to
say that they had a gift of ''yut I up leichee," meaning a basket of
leichee, which had been specially sent from China for Father. They
asked the office to send a large car to pick it up. Anna, Father's sec-
retary, wondered why a large car had to be sent for "yut nup leichee,''
which meant one leichee. She thought the person from Xinhua was
speaking in slang by changing the "n" sound in the word " mtp" to
an "1" which was a common habit among young Cantonese.^" How-
ever, she did send a large car as requested, and when the car came
back, it held a huge basket of leichee. The term "hp," which meant
"basket," was no longer commonly used by the younger generation,
The Chinese Patriot 173
and Anna had been confused. She said that was an incident she would
never forget. Anyway, there was a distribution in the office of leichee
for everyone that day.
Father helped a great number of people in his life, and he often
received gifts from them, but there were one or two people who were
jealous of Father, and who would send him clocks. Anna found this
most objectionable because, according to Cantonese folklore, giving
a clock means that you want that person to die. But Father was not
superstitious. He said, "If they want to give it to me, that's fine."''
As Father was very well known, and was the first prominent per-
son from Hong Kong to travel extensively in China after the war,
over the years, some young men from the mainland claimed to be his
sons. What was not reported in the newspapers was the fact that
Mother usually accompanied him and that he was always escorted by
officials from the Chinese government. So, he ignored this nuisance.
(In a similar way, young women in Hong Kong claimed to be Moth-
er's goddaughters, since they could not very well claim to be her
biological children.) It became a joke in the office whenever the staff
heard about another claimant. Because of the way Father conducted
his life, Grand-uncle Lee Shu Yuen and the office staff agreed that if
it had been anybody else, the claims might be credible, but not Father.
The claimants should have done their homework first.^'
During the 1970s, Father became good friends with Yao Kang^^ of
John Swire & Sons (H.K.) Ltd. Even though the Lee family had had
a good business relationship with the company since 1948, and
Father was the head of the family, the two men became close friends
only when Yao became a Master in the Masonic Lodge in 1972. They
often sat together at the Masonic meetings, and Father came to trust
him. Yao often went with Father to the Masonic Lodges in Japan in
January, and Father often called Yao to deal with both personal and
business matters.
Yao, who had worked for many years in China, had established
good relationships there, and spoke many Chinese dialects. Father
often invited him to participate whenever there were visitors from
China in Hong Kong, be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. In this man-
ner, Yao got to know people like the governor of Guangdong and
174 Building Bridges
vice-premiers and ministers from China while they were visiting
Hong Kong unofficially.'"* Yao was impressed by Father's willingness
to help others and by his extensive connections with top Chinese gov-
ernment officials.
In 1978， China opened up for business. The Chinese government
invited the Swire Group to visit Beijing, since Swire was an old estab-
lished foreign company that had operated in China since the 1800s.
When the name of the representative from the company was submit-
ted, Father said no, Yao should to be the one to represent Swire. Yao
went, even though he was getting on in years, and thought a younger
person should represent the company. Father trusted Yao, and
believed he would do justice to both China and Swire.
One day in 1981, Father phoned Yao Kang and asked him to keep
the following Wednesday clear because he needed him to look after
a minister from China for the whole day. He asked Yao to plan a
program for this man who was an engineer by training. At 8:30 in
the morning on that day, with Hon Chiu at the Lee Gardens Hotel,
Yao was introduced to Jiang Zemin who was then Minister of Elec-
tronic Industries. Father said to him, "Y.K., you better take good
care of this man. He has great potential." Yao showed Jiang the air-
port, and in particular, the maintenance department, the facilities of
Cathay Pacific (owned by Swire) and public housing in Kowloon, in
all of which Jiang showed great interest. Yao also took him to lunch,
and spoke to him about finance and commerce in general. Father
thought Yao was the perfect person to take Jiang around since they
were both from Shanghai, and would have a lot in common. As it
turned out, Jiang's vice-minister Wei Mingyi had been Yao's room-
mate at Beijing University, and it was Wei who had originally advised
Yao in 1948 to take the job with Swire in England. After that visit,
Jiang became Mayor of Shanghai, and Yao visited him and they
became good friends. After the June 4, 1989 incident at Tiananmen
Square, Jiang became Party Secretary, and Wei Mingyi became the
president of China International Trust and Investment Corporation
(CITIQ." To this day, Yao Kang thinks that Father had vision, and
like many others, always gives him credit for being able to see poten-
tial in others.
The Chinese Patriot 175
In 1979, Sir Murray Maclehose was the first governor of Hong
Kong to be invited to visit Beijing and tour western China. At the end
of his visit, he attended the Guangzhou-Kowloon Through Train"'
ceremony in Guangzhou. My parents, who were visiting Hainan
Island, accompanied by the Director of Xinhua News Agency, Wang
Kuang," were invited to attend the ceremony. A special plane was
sent to Hainan to take them to Guangzhou, but they almost didn't
make it because of high winds. The plane had to take off due west
instead of north, but finally landed in Zhaoqing, and from there they
made it to Guangzhou." The event was very important to Father
because it signalled the beginning of communication in earnest
between Britain and China.
Not only did Father build a relationship between Hong Kong and
China, but his international network also extended to Europe and
Japan. He worked with N.M. Rothschild and Sons of London, A. P.
Moller of Denmark, Yamaichi Securities of Japan and many others.
Foreign investments poured into the colony and eventually into
China. His prestige rose while he kept busy looking after his many
businesses and starting new ones. Once there was friendship, dialogue
and business followed. And when China opened up for business in the
late 1970s, Father took the lead in the first joint venture.
By the 1970s, Father had attained the respect and trust of different
segments of society in Hong Kong, members of the government as
well as by the leaders in China. He was regarded internationally as
one of the "decision makers" in Hong Kong,) He was satisfied that
the Hong Kong government was working on behalf of the popula-
tion. These were important years, when he helped to lay the
foundation for a peaceful transfer of sovereignty, both in business
links between Hong Kong and China, and in the structure of the
future government of Hong Kong.
He was regarded by many in Hong Kong as the ideal person to be
the Chief Executive when Hong Kong returned to China on July 1,
1997. Whenever I heard that mentioned, I always pointed out that by
1997, Father would be ninety-two years old.
I'm sure that Father was able to work at the age of seventy-eight
like a young man of thirty-five because he was full of ideas, and was
176 Building Bridges
always starting new projects. By the beginning of the 1980s, he had
planned two new projects in China: to improve the international tele-
phone system in Guangzhou, and to build a double railway line
between Shenzhen and Guangzhou. These unfortunately could not be
realized before his death."
By January 1982, China was the largest supplier of goods to Hong
Kong, overtaking Japan for the first time in recent history. Father
believed that the increase in trade between Hong Kong and China
called for improvements in China's transportation system:
To meet the ever-increasing volume of trade, the means of
transportation between Hong Kong and Guangdong must
be improved. In order to reduce delays in the transit of
goods and to reduce the cost of transportation and handling,
the Guangzhou-Shenzhen railway must be double-tracked to
link up with Kowloon as an order of first priority. Hong
Kong is the only deep-sea port with all modern facilities on
the South China coast and an increasing number of contain-
ers will flow in both directions between Hong Kong and
Guangzhou. This traffic must, in the near future, be carried
by rail. ...The double tracking of the railway could be carried
out with comparative ease and completed quickly at reason-
able cost ― to the benefit of Hong Kong, China and the
world."
When our family attended the grand opening of the Garden Hotel
in Guangzhou in 1985, and one of our sons could not be with us, I
was able to call direct from our hotel room to Toronto without any
problem. I was very impressed.
The Garden Hotel
When China was opened for joint ventures with foreign capital,
Father immediately responded. In taking the lead, he wanted to give
the Chinese government credibility. Since he knew that the hotels in
China were all substandard, he planned to build the largest and most
beautiful hotel in China.
The Chinese Patriot 177
In the late 1970s, the Chinese Communist Party was inexperienced
in dealing with joint ventures, and Father's was the first. It became
extremely trying for him because of endless negotiations, red tape,
delays, and the resulting escalation in cost.
Father had originally wanted to build a hotel in Beijing, but was
asked to build one on Hainan Island instead. He realized then that
those in the Chinese government involved in this project had no con-
cept of business. Hainan Island in the 1970s did not have the
infrastructure to support a project of that magnitude.
Instead, Father chose a prime location in Guangzhou, close to the
train station which would be convenient for business people coming
to the Guangzhou Trade Fair. The site was near Beiyunshan, which
had an important airfield, and was a high-security defence location
for Guangzhou. Father was asked to build a hotel with anti-aircraft
guns on the roof and a bomb shelter underneath. It again took time
and patience while he and Yang Shangkun, who was then the vice-
chairman of the Military Commission, talked to those who had made
the request in Beijing, and the demands were dropped. The hotel,
however, was built with its own emergency generator, which was and
still is very necessary.
So the Garden Hotels Holdings (Hong Kong) Limited was formed
and a joint venture agreement" was signed between it and the
Guangzhou Lingnan Enterprises Company on March 28, 1980." The
development site, covering 52,600 square metres, was located south
of Guangzhou Baiyun Guest House, on what had been vegetable
farmland. The Garden Hotel" was to be built by Guangzhou Pearl
River Foreign Investment Construction Company in two phases ―
1,300 rooms to be completed in the first phase and 940 rooms in the
second ― at an estimated cost of about US$50,000 per room/'' The
project was comprised of a hotel, a conference centre and an apart-
ment tower.
Father raised the capital among his friends and from the banks,
with himself as the major shareholder. Many of his friends rallied
behind him. Swire was asked to participate, and even though it was
totally against Swire's principles to take part in this type of invest-
ment, Yao Kang persuaded the company to become a minor
178 Building Bridges
shareholder. A. P. Meller, the Danish company which continues to this
day to have a close relationship with the various businesses of the Lee
family, invested in the company because of Father. The total amount
raised was HK$700 million,
I remember the enthusiasm with which Father talked about the pro-
ject. It was to be not only a five-star hotel, the largest in China, but
one of the largest and most beautiful in the world, and it was to be his
gift to China. On December 27, 1980, Yang Shangkun laid the foun-
dation stone for the Garden Hotel. Father expressed the hope that this
would contribute in a small way to the modernization of China"
The architect for the Garden Hotel was Szeto Wai, Father's friend
who had designed The Chinese University of Hong Kong. The Chi-
nese parties in the joint venture*" requested that all the rooms be
almost identical. C.T. Wu and his son were drawn into the planning,
because Father had wanted them to help with the future management
of the hotel. They objected to making all the rooms the same and
insisted that there should be many different configurations of rooms
in a modern hotel. They also objected to the design of a revolving
restaurant because they felt that it was not suitable for the location.
All this caused delays in the construction. Corrections were made to
construct the rooms in different sizes, and suites were added to make
the hotel more marketable. But the revolving restaurant remained.
Unfortunately, this led to bad feelings between C.T. Wu and his son
on one side, and the hotel group on the other,)
By early 1983, because of bad financial management, there were
huge cost overruns. The problems of the construction became obvious
and it was very stressful for Father,'' When he passed away in July, Bei-
jing requested that Mother take over the chairmanship of Garden
Hotels Holdings (Hong Kong) Limited." Xu Jiatun, the newly appoint-
ed director of Xinhua News Agency, organized a dinner for the
representatives from China, and Mother agreed to become the chair-
man. Now it was up to her to solve the financial crisis. Despite the fact
that Swire was only a minor shareholder, Yao Kang took the lead in
helping to solve the problem. He told the representative from the Chi-
nese side of the hotel company that Swire would raise sufficient
The Chinese Patriot 179
additional capital, on condition that the company could send auditors
into China to check the books. But when the auditors went in, they
couldn't get the information they needed. There were no books to
show how the US$100 million had been spent. In order for the project
to carry on, all the original investors were asked to put in additional
capital, not only because of China's appeal for foreign investment but
also out of respect for Father's memory. Swire took the lead in putting
in additional capital, and also made up the difference when an investor
failed to put in their share. The accountant for the company was set
aside, and the hotel proceeded to completion."
On October 28, 1984, the hotel opened for business. Among the
major tenants were offices of the American Consulate and the Japan-
ese Consulate," and their residences were in the twin tower" My
parents' old friend Reiko Ogata became the liaison in the Garden
Hotel for the Japanese government and businesses. She later worked
in promotion for the hotel in Tokyo until 1988.
The grand opening of the hotel was planned for August 28, 1985,
and guests were invited to stay for three days. We flew to Hong Kong
to join the group for the celebration. Many cars of the through train
from Hong Kong to Guangzhou were booked for guests, and the
party really started at the train station in Hong Kong.
We arrived to a red-carpet welcome. Just as I expected, the hotel
was not only grand, it was absolutely beautiful. When I saw Mother
making her speech in Mandarin, I felt very proud, and wished that
Father could have been there too.
In 1989, after the June 4 incident in Tiananmen Square, all busi-
nesses in China suffered. The Garden Hotel had no income, yet it still
had interest payments to make to the syndicated loan. It faced fore-
closure by the banks. Mother decided to go to Beijing to seek help.
An official visit was planned to see President Yang Shangkun, who
was a pragmatic person and had great respect for my parents.
In early 1990, accompanied by a senior official from Xinhua News
Agency, Mother paid a visit to President Yang, who invited her to
dinner at Diaoyutai.'' Mother told the president that the investors
had come to the end of the road, so the choice was for the Chinese
180 Building Bridges
government to take over the hotel, or else it would have to be closed.
President Yang said to her, "The Garden Hotel will never close, Mrs.
Lee, don't worry. "
A month after Mother's visit, the Bank of China called to say that
the Garden Hotels Holdings (Hong Kong) Ltd. had an unsecured line
of credit of US$25 million. Mother's "rescue" mission was successful.
Fortunately, the line of credit didn't have to be used, because business
gradually returned to normal, and within a few years, the entire loan
was paid off.
In Father's later years, he was sometimes asked why he put money
in the Bank of China. The bank's interest rate was only 4 per cent,
whereas he could get a much higher return at other financial institu-
tions. His answer was, "I don't intend to take the money out. China
is my country.""
13
The
Businessman
"Victory in war and profit in business,"' was what Father once
said the name Lee stands for, and he certainly had a winner's mental-
ity. However, he never could be a "successful" businessman in the
true sense of someone who is completely profit-oriented. People often
said that Father could have been a lot wealthier than he was, but he
had a different agenda. He was a socially responsible businessman for
whom people came first and profit second. He believed that money
ought to be used to benefit people and not to pamper oneself. When
he was interviewed in 1975 by Berta Manson for a series called "The
Empire Builders" in the South China Morning Post, he lamented that
the rich industries were doing "too little for the lot of Hong Kong's
underprivileged youth. "-
Many people in Hong Kong had become overnight billionaires
through speculation.' It was a practice Father abhorred, because it
upset economic stability and drove prices up, making life difficult for
ordinary people. He considered speculators the scourge of mankind.
Although the Lee family owned many properties in Hong Kong, he
cringed whenever property prices were driven sky high, because it
meant that many people would not be able to afford a place to live/
He spoke very publicly on this issue on many occasions, and certain-
ly practised what he preached.
181
182 Building Bridges
Investment and not speculation was, to Father, the key to respon-
sible and good business. Father believed "a company must have a
solid foundation and expand over the years. ...The best improvement
is long, gradual and steady. ，" In a speech in 1982, he said:
Such business activities [speculation], which may enrich a
few individuals, bring no real wealth to the community and
provide little employment to the local population. Activi-
ties of a highly speculative nature cannot be of benefit in a
new "Hong Kong Order.'"
It was something I have learnt from him. With speculation, one can
make a great deal of money overnight, but one can also lose every-
thing, and many people are destroyed along the way. Investment to
him also meant investment in people, providing jobs and improving
people's standard of living. Many young people nowadays might
think this philosophy belongs to the dinosaur age, but I still believe it
is the basis of a sound and stable society.
Father tried to instill his belief in others. Anna, his secretary, told
me about an incident in the 1970s that concerned the purchase of con-
dominiums. The procedure for purchasing condos in Hong Kong was
and still is quite different from that in other parts of the world. Peo-
ple have to line up for numbers just to obtain the right to purchase.
Many people go without sleep just to get to the front of the line. One
day, Father told all the office staff that if they were interested in pur-
chasing a condo in one of the new developments owned by someone
he knew, he could get them low numbers (meaning they would have
priority), but they had to promise him that they were purchasing a
condo to live in and not for speculation. Anna said, "I missed a chance
to make some money, but I didn't dare disobey your father!"
Father did not believe in bargaining because he felt that everyone
had a right to make a living. If the price is not right, you don't buy. I
remember being with him and some of my parents' friends at a Chi-
nese New Year bazaar. A friend of Mother's wanted to buy a budding
peach tree^ for her home and bargained for a lower price, but was
stopped by Father. He believed that people should be able to make a
bit more money around Chinese New Year.
The Businessman 183
Father was known as a thorough person. Whatever he took on,
he gave it a great deal of his time and effort. As company chairman
― and he was chairman of many companies ― he would check the
annual reports carefully and make corrections before they went to
print, which was normally not his responsibility/ And yet, as an
entrepreneur with a lot of ideas and great connections, he was not
interested in the details of operations. He was more excited in mak-
ing deals than in the bottom line, so at times he trusted the wrong
people in management, and certain businesses didn't do well for
him. 9 Because he was an honourable man, he expected others to be
the same. Once he trusted someone, he would continue to trust,
despite warnings from others that the person was working against
him. At times like these, it was very upsetting for Mother, who
could see what was going on, but was powerless to do anything
about it.
This was true of his experience with Kowloon Taxi, which he start-
ed soon after the war. Father was probably one of the first people to
buy diesel- fuelled Mercedes-Benz cars as taxis. But Kowloon Taxi
eventually went downhill because of bad management, and was final-
ly sold when the Cross Harbour tunnel was built.'"
I often heard Father say that he wasn't interested in being the
wealthiest man in Hong Kong, even if with his connections, he could
have been. This doesn't sound like a statement by a businessman. He
was a thrifty person, and money didn't have great significance to him
personally. Like most members of the Lee family, Father never wore
flashy clothes or drove fancy cars. I remember him telling me when
Rolls-Royce first came to Hong Kong, that he was approached to buy
one, and his answer was, "I can't afford the ostentation." He would
rather drive around in a Volkswagen Golf. And yet, at the same time,
nothing would stop him from buying Mother precious jewels. Those
probably were the only times he ever splurged.
In March 1960, Father led the Hong Kong Trade Mission to West
Africa. On his return, he made suggestions to Hong Kong manufac-
turers about packaging, pricing, sizing and marketing. He
recommended that shoeboxes be improved because rats ate the Chi-
nese glue made from rice flour that was used to make the boxes, that
184 Building Bridges
chinaware be shipped in wooden crates to prevent breakage, and that
clothing sizes be standardized. He lamented that manufacturers had
lost orders because of poor quality. He believed that Hong Kong
products could command the same prices as Japanese products if they
were well made, because there was a demand for them. He also sug-
gested that all Hong Kong manufacturers get together to print a
catalogue to make ordering easier for buyers."
In 1963, Father was asked by the Hong Kong government to lead
a delegation to the Frankfurt International Trade Fair in August.
Since he had already been invited by the German government to tour
Germany as their guest, he made arrangements to do both around the
same time. Upon his first stop in London, he was handed a letter from
St. James's Palace, inviting him to attend an Investiture at Bucking-
ham Palace on that Wednesday, July 24, to receive a CBE from the
Queen. Since Mother was not with him on that trip, he invited two
friends, Colonel Jack and Major General Tom Churchill, to accom-
pany him to the palace. Everything happened so suddenly that he had
to rent a morning coat for the occasion.
It was Father's habit to make frequent trips to Europe. That summer,
Father flew from London to Denmark to visit friends, the Jebsens, in
Aabenraa and at their cottage on Romo Island. When Mother, who
was not with him on that trip, heard about Father swimming in the
frigid water of Als Fjord, her comment was that Father still thought
himself a young man. Father was driven by another friend, Martin
Schroter, from Romo Island to Hamburg, Germany, where he was
taken to major centres, guided by officials of the German government,
Helmut Kluge and Verner Walbroel. From there, Father flew to Vien-
na to meet Uncle Quo Wai and they toured factories and hydro-electric
stations in Austria. At the end of August, he led the trade delegation to
Frankfurt. Father was a tireless learner.
In the 1960s, as many small factories sprouted up in Hong Kong,
land became a problem. In March 1963, Father spoke in the Legisla-
tive Council, on behalf of the new and small factory owners, against
the government's policy of forcing them off the land in order to sell it
to developers. He said that the industries had obtained their licences to
The Businessman 185
operate from the government, and should be protected. If the govern-
ment wanted them to move, alternative locations ought to be provided
at a reasonable rent. They should also be notified when the land they
occupied was to be auctioned, as they had a right to put in a bid. He
rejected the suggestion that small industries should be absorbed by the
large ones, and stressed the importance of protecting hard-working
small-industry owners who were the backbone of society."
There were concerns during those years that Hong Kong was los-
ing investments to other areas of the world. It was a problem that
Father had often mentioned. In 1963, Father suggested at the Leg-
islative Council meeting that the inheritance tax be abolished. The
tax collected that year only came to $20 million, which was a frac-
tion of the amount of investment lost to other jurisdictions because
of it.i3 Unfortunately, his advice was not taken.
Besides helping other industrialists, Father was involved in indus-
tries himself. In 1964, he started the Hong Kong Tube and Metal
Products Ltd. in Peng Chau, one of the islands off Hong Kong. The
product from this factory was new to the colony. In the opening cer-
emony on December 21, Father was proud to announce the
establishment of a new industry for Hong Kong. The Hon. D.R.
Holmes officiated at the opening, and in commemoration of the
event, the board promised to make an annual donation to provide for
ten free places in two local schools for the children of Peng Chau."
Hong Kong Tube and Metal Products used only the best supplies. For
example, they purchased their steel from Nippon Steel Corporation,
and hot rolled steel coils from Yawata Iron and Steel Co. Ltd., both
Japanese companies. 丁 he Hong Kong Tube and Metal Products con-
tinued in operation until Father's death, at which time it was sold.
Although he was involved in many businesses, Father never lost his
interest in engineering problems. Soon after the war, Father suggest-
ed that the government build a tunnel through the mountain from
Happy Valley to Aberdeen. At that time, he estimated that it would
cost only a little over $1 million. However, the government was not
interested. A tunnel was finally built at a much later date and at much
greater cost."
186 Building Bridges
In 1964, the Legislative Council was planning to erect additional
buildings for the British armed forces stationed in Hong Kong in
areas such as Shck Kong in the New Territories. Father recommend-
ed that all buildings be designed so that they could be converted to
libraries, schools or offices with minor alterations. Thus, when the
time came for them to be handed back by the British to the govern-
ment of Hong Kong (Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong), they
would remain valuable properties." Father was already preparing
Hong Kong for the change of sovereignty in 1997, and he did not
want to see resources wasted.
Also in 1964, he experimented with solar heating for hot water by
building a contraption on the roof of Tower Court where we lived.
The structure was of canvas and inside were six black tubes each six
inches wide. 丁 he black tubes would absorb the heat of the sun and
warm the water in the structure. It was the first solar heating system
ever built in Hong Kong and cost only a hundred dollars. Although
it was successful, and his efforts were reported in the media, it was
never built for commercial use.''
A New Tunnel
Ever since 1955, there had been public discussions in Hong Kong
of improving harbour crossings between the island and Kowloon by
building either a bridge or a tunnel. A bridge would be exposed to
the weather, and it might not be safe during the typhoon season.
However, a tunnel would be a much more complicated engineering
undertaking and would cost much more than a bridge. Public dis-
cussions on the subject continued for a number of years. It was not
until May 1963 that the Hong Kong government made the decision
not to build a bridge. After that, discussions were concentrated on
the tunnel. 18
A tunnel between Hong Kong and Kowloon would put an end to the
long line-ups at the Yaumatai Car Ferry. In those days, no one took a
car across the harbour unless it was absolutely necessary, because it
was a full-day excursion. Our family would take the car across only for
special family gatherings and Chinese New Year. Most people crossed
the harbour by ferry and then hired a taxi on the other side.
The Businessman 187
In 1963, Father, J.L. Marden of Wheelock Marden, the Hon. J.D.
Clague and Lawrence Kadoorie formed the Victoria City Develop-
ment Co. Ltd., whose main objective was the building of a
cross-harbour tunnel between the island and Kowloon. The name
was later changed to Cross-Harbour Tunnel Company Limited,
Hong Kong. The original plan was to build a tunnel for both cars and
pedestrians.'^ It was to be a two-lane tunnel and the plan and the lay-
out were sent to the Colonial Secretary and the Crown Lands and
Survey Office in January 1964.-'^ But by August 11, 1965, when
approval for the construction of the tunnel was finally passed by the
Hong Kong government, the plan had changed. The tunnel would be
for cars only. It would be open twenty-four hours a day even during
typhoon season, and it would cost an estimated $210 million. The
Hong Kong government would be the owner of one quarter of the
project.-' Construction was to start the following fall.
When the right to build the tunnel was granted, Father worked
very hard to find investors for the project. Most of the financing came
from a British merchant investment banker." During the 1960s, the
economy was poor in Hong Kong and it was difficult to persuade
people to invest. Father and Lee Hysan Estate Co. were some of the
original investors, together with Marden and the Kadoorie family.
Father tried to convince the owner of the Yaumatai Car Ferry, Lau
Ding Kuok, to invest in the company, especially when the business of
his ferry service would be affected by the building of a tunnel, but
Lau declined, and to this day, he regrets it.-'
During the formation of the company, Father went to visit Fei Yim-
ing of Ta Kung Pao to ask if he thought the timing was right to build
the cross-harbour tunnel. I believe he meant the political timing. Fei's
answer was that it would be absolutely necessary for the convenience
of the citizens of Hong Kong, and assured Father that Hong Kong's
political stability would be maintained for a long time?
During my parents' visit to us in Toronto in the early 1970s, Father
told me how difficult it was to get the cross-harbour tunnel under
way. In the beginning, it was difficult to get the Hong Kong govern-
ment to provide financial support. However, when the government of
France showed interest in injecting capital into the project, the Hong
Kong government immediately became interested.
188 Building Bridges
Father oversaw the engineering of the tunnel. Building a tunnel
under the harbour in the 1960s was a difficult feat, although Hon
Chiu told me, "Today, it is as easy as making duck soup."-' Being a
civil engineer, Father always liked to get involved in the construction.
When the first section of the tunnel was completed, Father invited Fei
Yiming to inspect it. 丁 he night before the tunnel was due to be
opened for traffic, Father invited Fei to drive with him from Hong
Kong to Kowloon. He explained the technical aspects of the con-
struction to his friend, about air circulation and the prevention of
water seepage.-*' Fei was most impressed by Father's complete
involvement. Father was very proud of this project.
When the tunnel was opened on August 2, 1972, traffic between
Hong Kong and Kowloon was revolutionized. -~ It was no longer a big
undertaking to cross between Hong Kong and Kowloon by car, and
line-ups at the Yaumatai Car Ferry were a thing of the past. Business
was not brisk at the beginning, because it cost five dollars for the
crossing, but people soon appreciated the convenience and there was
no turning back. Subsequently, when the exchange rate of the HK dol-
lar became very favourable against the pound sterling, the loan was
quickly paid back and the company went on to make great profits?
During one of our visits after the tunnel was first opened, we were
in a car with cousins driving across from Kowloon to Hong Kong. One
cousin said to me, "Every time we pay five dollars to cross, two out of
that goes into your father's pocket!" I was sure she was exaggerating.
The Telephone Company
In January 1962, Father was appointed to the board of directors of
the Hong Kong Telephone Company Limited by the chairman,
H.R.M. Cleland. In 1965, he himself became the chairman?
The Hong Kong telephone system was rather backward in the
1960s. In 1966, there were only 300,000 telephones lines in Hong
Kong, which came to eight for every one hundred persons. At the
same time, sixty thousand people were waiting in line for telephone
service. That year, Father decided to expand the operations of the
The Businessman 189
company by building more stations in different parts of Hong Kong,
to make it possible to increase the number of telephones lines to 1.8
million. Cables were laid under the ocean in Southeast Asia to
improve communications, and technical and management level per-
sonnel were hired to manage the increased demand. The profit that
year went up to $29 million?)
Because of his admiration for German engineering, Father decided
to purchase German equipment to improve the performance of the
telephone system. He was advised by Jardine Fleming;) to use Swiss
francs to fund the purchase. Unfortunately, the rate of exchange on
the Swiss francs appreciated many times against the Hong Kong dol-
lar, which made the purchase very expensive. Yet Father did not want
to raise the telephone rate. This produced great controversy and
Father had to shoulder the blame. David K.P. Li, whose father, Fook
Su Li, was on the board, believed that Father was badly advised. ^-
In 1969, despite the public outcry, the number of telephone lines
had increased to five hundred thousand, which was 12.45 per one
hundred persons, the second highest per capita in Asia after Japan.
When satellite communications were established in Hong Kong that
year, communications with other parts of the world were greatly
improved. The most important work for the company in 1970 was
the building of computerized connectors in the Lai Chi Kok station.
When it was completed, it was the most advanced independent sys-
tem in the world, able to service the New Territories as well as Hong
Kong. In the technical department, almost two thousand employees
were trained. Four Chinese engineers were sent to England for
advanced training, and six were sent to Munich in Germany for tech-
nical training, A school in Kwun Tong to train employees was
scheduled to be finished by April 1971."
During Father's term as chairman, it was discovered there were a
great many problems in the management of the company. Rumour had
it that there were people within the company who were taking bribes,
and that this problem went all the way up to the general manager,
Charles Male.'"* Lydia Dunn, the present Baroness Dunn, was one of
the people sent by the government to investigate the mismanagement.
190 Building Bridges
Unfortunately, the investigation could not proceed because Charles
Male left for South Africa. Since there was no extradition treaty
between South Africa and Hong Kong, he could not be brought back
to answer questions.
At that time, Father's office was on the twenty-fifth floor of the
Prince's Building, and the Telephone Company was on the fourth floor.
He was very much aware of the constant flurry of investigative activi-
ties between the two offices and this caused a great strain on him.
Father asked his friend Jack Cater'*' to be the general manager of
the Telephone Company, but since Governor Sir Murray Maclehose
needed Cater to head the Independent Commission Against Corrup-
tion (ICAC), which was established in 1974, Father decided that the
public needed his friend more, and the general manager's position
went to F. L. Walker.
Father waited until the controversy was over and the company was
back on its feet, then he resigned. He expressed to Fei Yiming that, in
time, people in Hong Kong would appreciate what he had done to
improve the telephone system.^'
The Gas Company
In 1964, Father became the first Chinese chairman of the Hong
Kong and China Gas Co., which was established in 1862 to provide
gas lighting to the colony. In 1975, Hong Kong Electric, which was
controlled by Jardine, attempted to take over Hong Kong and China
Gas. Father resisted. It became a high-profile takeover attempt that
Father referred to as "a big fish swallowing a small fish."-- He was
constantly on the news explaining to the shareholders why they
shouldn't sell their shares to Hong Kong Electric, and exposing the
financial position of the latter which he believed would be detrimen-
tal to the shareholders of China Gas. Even though the Hong Kong and
China Gas Company was a much smaller company, he managed to
show his shareholders how economically stable and profitable it
In all this, Father spent a great deal of time with two of his board
members, the Hon. J.D. Claque, a taipan of the Hutchison Group,
The Businessman 191
and Noel Croucher, a leading stockbroker, who helped prevent the
hostile takeover by advising his clients not to sell their shares to Hong
Kong Electric, By August 20, 1975, Father and the board of direc-
tors succeeded in preventing the takeover.
The Gas Company was originally registered in the United King-
dom. In 1982, Father, as chairman, made the decision to move the
registration to Hong Kong. At the time of the transfer, only 2 of the
2,238 shareholders were registered on the London Register. Father
explained to the shareholders that while the company had always
been at a disadvantage because it had to comply with British legis-
lation, Britain's entry to the European Economic Community in
1973 had resulted in an even greater degree of legislative control,
most of which was inappropriate to a company operating in Hong
Kong. At a cost of $1.2 million, the company severed its ties with
Britain, The ceremony was held in Hon Chiu's office in Sunning
Plaza, and Hong Kong and China Gas became a Hong Kong com-
pany. To commemorate the event, all employees were presented
with a one-ounce gold coin, and grants of $250,000 each were
made to the University of Hong Kong, The Chinese University of
Hong Kong and the Polytechnic/'
The Hong Kong and China Gas Company's profits rose from $39
million in 1980 to $235 million within six years, and it achieved the
status of a major utility company after 125 years of operations. Gas
was no longer the fuel of the wealthy, but an everyday necessity for
the people of Hong Kong,
Ever since the 1970s, Father had worked towards obtaining natural
gas from China, building pipelines under the ocean to Hong Kong. This
would not only bring in foreign exchange for China, but would benefit
the people of Hong Kong. Unfortunately, due to safety problems and
engineering difficulties, his dream was not realized during his lifetime."
After Father died, the Hong Kong and China Gas company signed
a joint memorandum with Qin Wencai, president of the China
National Offshore Oil Corporation in 1985, to bring natural gas to
Hong Kong, at a date to be determined." When this finally happens,
it will usher in an era of cheaper gas for Hong Kong.
192 Building Bridges
The Rothschild Bank
The Rothschild Bank wanted to establish a bank in Hong Kong
and approached Father to be a founding director. In March 1973,
N.M. Rothschild & Sons (Hong Kong) Limited was formed, and in
January 1974, Father was appointed deputy chairman. Everyone
wondered why he was approached by a Jewish bank, and the
rumour in Hong Kong was that he must have been circumcised. The
fact of the matter was that the bank needed someone with an impec-
cable reputation to head it. Sir Evelyn de Rothschild was the
chairman, but since he was not based in Hong Kong, Father chaired
many of the meetings. In the meantime, the two became very good
friends. Sir Evelyn referred to Father as the first chairman of the
bank in Hong Kong.
During Father's term as deputy chairman, 1974-1978， he intro-
duced potential business opportunities to the bank and assisted in
the recruitment of local executives. Sir Evelyn wrote to me that
Father was very keen on putting the following motto in Chinese in
front of the bank office:
Devotion with zeal in Finance,
Wealth is developed by the golden mean;
Enterprise is all-embracing,
Exchanges pervade the four seas;
Assets abound in resources,
Making fortunes by fair and honest dealing;
Steering a course in economic growth,
For the benefit of commerce and industry;
With united and popular support,
The outlook for prosperity is bright!^"*
Having an international outlook made it easy for Father to make
friends and have business associations with people from all over
the world, as with the Rothschild Bank. In a 1979 letter to Father,
The Businessman 193
Sir Evelyn wrote:
... I was also very pleased to see that N.M.R. Hong Kong
is doing so well and I know much of the success is due to
your guiding hand, which is greatly appreciated.
... Again my grateful thanks to you for all the help and
kindness you showed me ..."
The Danish Connection
Father's association with Messrs. A. P. Mailer of Denmark began in
the 1960s. The relationship grew stronger as time went on, and the
company invested in many of Father's projects. The owner, Msesrk
Mc-Kinney MoUer and Father became good friends.
Messrs. A.P. Moller was started in 1904 by Arnold Peter Meller
with his father, Captain Peter Msesrk Mailer, in Svendborg, Den-
mark, as a shipping company. In 1965, on the death of his father,
Group and the company developed into a major international enter-
prise. The Group consisted of Msersk Line, Msersk Tankers, Msersk
Drilling in the Danish part of the North Sea, Odense Steel Shipyard,
Msersk Container Industries, Msersk Air, A/S Roulunds Fabriker for
the production of fan belts and brake linings for European cars,
Pharma-Plast for the production and sale of medical supplies,
Msersk Data for the supply and sale of data processing, Dansk
Supermarked, the second largest supermarket chain in Denmark,
and many more.
When Per Jorgensen, managing director of Messrs. A.P. Moller,
arrived in Hong Kong in August 1977, he and Father immediately
became good friends. By that time, the company already had three
joint ventures with the Lee family: the Lee Gardens Hotel and the
office towers One Hysan Avenue and Leighton Centre. Jorgensen
said, at the time, his international corporate experience was limited,
194 Building Bridges
and Father took him under his wings and introduced him to the
sophisticated corporate life and its procedures in Hong Kong. Father
offered friendship, guidance and goodwill, and Jorgensen appreciat-
ed Father's openness, dynamism and his modern and efficient way of
handling matters.
My parents visited Denmark in July 1982. Per Jorgensen and his
wife spent a lot of time with them and Mr. Jorgensen told me that
Father was a good tourist because he was inquisitive, interested and
tireless. Apparently, he visited many castles and constantly asked
questions. At the end of 1982, the chairman and CEO of A. P. Meller,
Mr. Msersk Mc-Kinney Mailer, accompanied by his daughter Ane
Uggla, visited my family in Hong Kong/' Neville and I were in Hong
Kong at the time and had the pleasure of having dinner with them.
A. P. Moller continued to be a great supporter of all Father's busi-
ness undertakings as in the Hysan Development Company and the
Garden Hotel Holdings (Hong Kong) Ltd. Per Jorgensen became one
of the first directors of Hysan Development Company.
A Shipping Company
Father had an indirect interest in Japan in connection with Grand
Marine Holdings Ltd., a Hong Kong shipping company that built
many of their cargo ships in Japan. The names of most of their ships
started with the word "Grand," such as Grand Eagle and Grand Jade,
the latter being named after Mother, whose Chinese name means jade.
Grand Marine was owned by Li Ping San, the father-in-law of my
mother's niece Greta Li. Because of the family connection, Li asked
Father to become the chairman of his company and Father helped the
family to take the company public in the 1970s.
My parents went to the launching of many of their ships in Japan,
and for a number of years, the company's profits soared. Unfortu-
nately, Li became very ill. Just before he died, he asked to see Father
and made him promise to look after his two sons who would be
inheriting the company. Unfortunately, after Li died, the sons sold the
company to Carrion, an investment group headed by Malaysian-born
businessman George S.G. Tan, for what they believed to be a large
The Businessman 195
amount of money. Actually most of it was in the form of shares in the
Carrion Group.
Since Father was not consulted, he decided to sever his ties with
Grand Marine and sell all his shares in the company. This was fortu-
nate, because the sale of Grand Marine eventually bankrupted the Li
family. The original personal guarantees that the father, Li Ping San,
had given to the banks were passed on to the sons even though the
company had been sold" In 1983, the collapse of the Carrion group
became the biggest corporate scandal ever in Hong Kong, when
Malaysian banker Lorrain Osman and Tan were found guilty of
defrauding Bumiputra Malaysia Finance Ltd. (BMFL) of $6 billion
(US$769 million). BMFL was a subsidiary of Bank Bumiputra, the
second largest bank in Malaysia"
The Canadian Connection
In Father's speech in Frankfurt in June 1982, he said:
There is no doubt at all, in my mind, that Hong Kong can
assist China in her oil exploration programme in many
ways. The importance of Hong Kong to China is undeni-
able, but of course we all realize too that Hong Kong
depends on China for her survival. Could the China offshore
oil and gas tilt the balance of the industrial world one day?^°
In the late 1970s, Ranger Oil of Calgary, Canada, approached
Father to form a company for oil exploration in China. Father turned
down the offer. The company then turned to the Hambros Bank of
London, a merchant bank in England. Through Hambros' connec-
tion with Yao Kang, they tried to reach Father. The proposal was to
set up an oil company that would have the rights to drill in the South
China Sea, recognized to be rich with oil reserves. Yao thought it was
a sound idea and called Father. The two men decided that this would
be good for China.
Father called a meeting between the Hon. Victor Lampson, a part-
ner of Cazenove & Co." of London, accompanied by David Lewis, a
director of Hambros Bank, at the Lee Hysan Estate Company board-
196 Building Bridges
room at One Hysan Avenue. Father agreed to the proposal, and
invested US$1 million in the company. He became the chairman of
Canada & Oriental Oil Limited (COOL) in 1981, and Yao Kang
became one of the directors. There were many other investors, includ-
ing some of Father's friends in Hong Kong.
Father believed that China had a rich oil reserve that had never
been tapped. 丁 he drilling started in the South China Sea at the end of
1981 or the beginning of 1982. At that time, there were seven foreign
oil companies drilling in the Yellow Sea, the South China Sea and
near Hainan Island. Father described these developments as "one of
the most important steps in the Four Modernisations of China.""
Between 1981 and 1984, thirty-five wells were drilled in the China
Sea without success. Then the world oil prices collapsed. Between
1986 and 1987, Ranger Oil bought back the shares and sold all the
rigs. In the end, the company was liquidated. As of June 1997, there
has not been any successful drilling by any oil company in the South
China Sea. The prospect of COOL was based on the original survey
from Ranger Oil."
By 1981, Hong Kong was already importing 20 per cent of its
petroleum products from China. Father believed that when China's
reserves came on stream, they would have a tremendous economic
impact on the world." Despite the lack of success of COOL up to the
time of his death, Father continued to have faith in China's offshore
oil reserves.
14
The Freemason:
A Lifetime
Commitment
For as long as I lived at home, I always heard about Father going
to Masonic meetings. These meetings were a mystery to me
because freemasonry was a close-knit society for men, although, in
later years, it became more open.
Freemasonry is a system of morality based on the principles of
brotherly love and charity ― not only of money but also of the mind
― truth and personal integrity. It is entirely non-political; political
discussions are forbidden in its premises.' It is a bond of fellowship
that unites its members all over the world. Despite the general mis-
conception in Hong Kong that only the rich and powerful are
members, it is actually open to every honest, free man, over twenty-
one years of age. A new mason is taught to be "exemplary in the
discharge of his duties as a citizen of the world. "-Masons refer to one
another as brothers, and freemasonry is proud of its philosophy of
making good men better.
With its basic teaching of charity, Masonic philanthropy helps a
great number of people worldwide. Masons run hospitals and look
after the handicapped, the blind, the mentally ill and the crippled.
丁 hey manage homes for seniors, provide scholarships and funds for
research work, and perform public service for their communities.
197
198 Building Bridges
Some scholars trace the origin of freemasonry as far back as the
Garden of Eden, others to the Emperors of China and others still, to
the Emperor of Japan. In the Far East, two aspects of the Oriental ori-
gin have been developed: the secret societies of China have many
practices in common with masonry, and Confucian rituals performed
by the Emperor of China to ensure continuance of the mandate of
Heaven also bear a close relationship to its ceremonials. ;
Present-day freemasonry originated with the stonemasons who
built the great churches of Europe. 丁 hey developed a society of
masons, which took simple medieval legends based on the art of
building, as well as stories from the Bible, and folklore, and devel-
oped them into complex rituals capable of universal appeal. The
process was formalized by the creation of Grand Lodges, which
spread rapidly throughout Europe and North America, and in just
over forty years, reached the Far East. Freemasonry started in Hong
Kong in the early 1800s. The Royal Sussex Lodge was established in
1845, and its daughter lodge, Zetland Lodge, was established eigh-
teen months later.
Father's connection with the freemasons started during his years in
England when he was introduced to it by his guardian, Mr. Churchill.
The concept of brotherly love, charity and truth appealed to him. It
was highly probable that he would have been initiated in Apollo Uni-
versity Lodge No. 357 if Grandfather had not suddenly passed away/
In January 1929, Father was initiated into the University Lodge of
Hong Kong Chapter No. 3666. Masonry has a system of so-called
"higher" degrees, for which ordinary lodge members are qualified by
experience. Father eventually became a member of every one of these
that existed in Hong Kong before the Pacific War. His enthusiasm
also led to a life-long commitment, culminating in his becoming the
District Grand Master for Hong Kong and the Far East.
During the war, when we lived in Chongqing, Father was such an
enthusiastic mason that he took part in the revival of the Lodge Star
of Southern China No. 2013, which originally met in Guangzhou. He
was also a visitor of Fortitude Lodge, which the Grand Lodge of Cal-
ifornia had temporarily set up in Chongqing. Although these two
lodges were located in the same city and were only a couple of miles
The Freemason: A Lifetime Commitment 199
apart, they were separated by the swift-flowing, bridgeless Yangtse
River which could rise forty feet within a couple of hours. Attending
a meeting could mean spending a day to get back home.;
After the war, Father continued to be active with the freemasons in
Hong Kong. In 1950, he assumed the chairs of both the Lodge Star
of Southern China (by then moved from Chongqing) and Concordia
Mark Lodge. In 1951, he took the First Principal's chair of the Uni-
versity Lodge. Around the same time, Zetland Hall, at 1 Kennedy
Road, was under construction. As the District Grand Superintendent
of Works, a nominal office, Father took it seriously as he did every-
thing else, and put his civil engineering training to work by making
daily visits to the site." The new Zetland Hall was located right across
from the steps that lead to the lower entrance of my school, St. Paul's
Co-educational College. I used to go there for lunch, and around
noontime, there was always someone playing the bagpipes, a sound
which I came to love.
In April 1961, Father was made the District Grand Master of Hong
Kong and the Far East by the Grand Master of England, the Right
Honorable the Earl of Scarborough. The district was formerly known
as the District of Hong Kong and South China. The geographical
jurisdiction was expanded to absorb the Masonic District of Japan,
which had been reduced to one lodge, and which had been working
as an unattached lodge answering directly to United Grand Lodge in
London. (Masonic lodges were first established in Japan in the 1870s,
and by the 1960s, the only one left was the Rising Sun Lodge.)
The moment Japan was under Father's district, he went to their
installation in Kobe every January. Father was known to be at his
mellowest at the festive boards that followed the Kobe installations,
and his enthusiasm was so catching that his Masonic brothers start-
ed to join him for the trip from Hong Kong, despite the chilly January
weather in Japan. After a few years, the wives were invited to join the
trip. The number had increased to almost twenty by the time Father
passed away, and the trip to Kobe had become a major annual event
for the Hong Kong masons/ He also made the journey with the Scot-
tish District Grand Master to consecrate beautiful Kirby Hall where
the Kobe lodges meet.
200 Building Bridges
In his new position, Father also inherited the difficult problem of
the disposal of the Masonic hall and its grounds in Yokohama, Japan,
a dilemma which would take the next twenty years to resolve. The
land had been owned by six English constitution bodies which oper-
ated in Yokohama before the Pacific War, but had not been revived
afterwards. Members of the Scottish lodge and new Masonic bodies,
which had been started by the occupation forces in Japan, had used
the hall and were deeply concerned at being left without a meeting
place. However, they had no financial resources to purchase the prop-
erty, even at a specially reduced price.
The matter was finally settled harmoniously in 1982. The site was
sold to the City of Yokohama for a public park, and most of the
funds were used to provide new premises, headed by the Scottish
Lodge, Star in the East No. 640. The balance of the funds was to be
administered by the English District for the Endowment of Freema-
sons' Research Fellowships at the University of Hong Kong and The
Chinese University of Hong Kong. ^ With Father's interest in educa-
tion, and his specially close relationship with the two universities, this
solution was of great personal satisfaction to him.
Even though Father was a member of the English Craft, he was a
regular visitor to other jurisdictions with lodges in Hong Kong. The
Grand Master of Ireland conferred honorary past mastership of the
constitution upon him, and the Grand Lodge of Scotland made him
an Honorary Deputy District Grand Master.
As the District Grand Master for twenty-one years, Father served
the freemasons with great dedication. There were fourteen lodges and
four associated Chapters in Hong Kong, each one with an installation
once a year and an annual general meeting. He attended all the instal-
lations and chaired all the annual general meetings without fail.
These were usually scheduled between October and April, and the
dates were picked either when he was in Hong Kong or when he
could fly back from wherever he might be in the world.
George Todkill, who was Father's Director of Ceremonies for
many years, told me that Father was easy to work with because he
always knew what he wanted. Being a prompt person, Father always
The Freemason: A Lifetime Commitment 201
entered the hall at exactly twenty minutes past six in the evening, and
at six-thirty, he was in his chair giving orders and running the meet-
ing. At exactly ten-twenty, Todkill was instructed to end the meeting,
no matter who was speaking at the time. A farewell toast was made,
and while all were standing, he would conduct Father out of the hall
to his car, although members who wished to stay to talk could do so.
Father was one for early evenings because he was an early riser.
Father may have hoped for the revival of freemasonry in mainland
China. On several occasions, when he had friends and acquaintances
visiting Hong Kong from China, he would invite them to private
lunches at Zetland Hall. When asked, he would explain the non-
political nature of the order and showed his guests the inside of the
meeting rooms. In his travels in China, he visited four Masonic halls
of former lodges in South China, being careful to avoid any sugges-
tion that he was trying to claim them back. He also made sure that
books on freemasonry which gave the correct view and history of the
Craft were available to officials in Beijing.'* Giving the correct view
was very important, for in 1974 an alleged expose of freemasonry
was published for Chinese readers. The books described the Hong
Kong lodges as foreigners' triad societies, and compared freemason-
ry to the Chinese secret triad societies. It attributed to freemasonry
many of the failings of the triads, and called it the "white men's inter-
national triad society.'"')
After Father passed away, people wondered whether the Chinese
government would allow freemasonry to continue in Hong Kong after
the transfer of sovereignty in 1997. Yao Kang went to speak to the
leaders in Beijing, stressing the fact that Father had been a mason all
his life. He came away with confirmation from the Hong Kong-
Macao Office that freemasonry would be allowed to continue after
1997, as long as it abided by the Basic Law. The meetings would con-
tinue to be conducted in English. However, the society would have to
be more open, since it was perceived as a secret society. This openness
would also apply to its social and charitable work. Since masons
always swear allegiance to the existing government, as of July 1, 1997
the Chinese government is toasted instead of the British Crown."
15
A Look
Into The Future
The early 1980s were years when the Sino- British discussions about
the handover were under way. The economy was on a downswing
and there was constant talk of emigration from Hong Kong because of
a lack of confidence in the future of the colony. Many people left for
countries such as Canada, the United States, Australia and New
Zealand. The talk of the town was, "We've been refugees once, we
don't want to be refugees again," Emigration became such a hot topic
that there were even special magazines catering to potential emigrants.'
Statistically, the picture looked brighter for both China and Hong
Kong. Between 1977 and 1982, the import of Chinese products into
Hong Kong increased by almost 32 per cent, at a value of $29,510
million, and the export of products from Hong Kong to China
increased by 187 per cent. The large increase in the latter was due to
the electricity provided by China Light & Power Company to Guang-
dong province. The modest modernization program in China was
already helping Hong Kong to re-emerge as an entrepot.'
In 1981, the Hong Kong government introduced district board
elections which became the first phase of a move to a more represen-
tative style of government. Because the British government was
preparing to negotiate the future of Hong Kong with the Chinese
government, they felt a need for the people of Hong Kong to have a
greater say in their own domestic affairs.
202
A Look Into The Future 203
In my family, life went on as usual, and Father maintained his ever-
lasting faith in Hong Kong and in China. His view on the idea of
"one country, two systems" was:
... the event will signal a new approach to international
relationship. The foundation of this relationship will be
based on the mutual respect of the two governments with
the interest of all parties, including that of the local popu-
lation in mind.
His vision for the future, beyond July 1, 1997, was that:
Hong Kong, as far as China is concerned, has a role to play
in her modernization for many more years to come, far
beyond 1997, provided that free enterprise tempered with
social justice remains and that we will not be crippled by
the introduction of slothful work ethics.'
Father maintained that people in Hong Kong still made their living
in the old-fashioned way ― by working hard. He pointed out that
even though people said China depended on Hong Kong for large
amounts of foreign exchange, where would Hong Kong be without
China ?4 Since Hong Kong depended on China for food and water,
and a cheap labour force, he wondered why most people seemed
oblivious to the fact that Hong Kong relied on China for its existence.
The biggest concern of the business community in Hong Kong
after the change of sovereignty to China in 1997 was whether it
would be overtaken by Shanghai as the leading business centre and
the gateway to China. There has always been competition between
Shanghai and Hong Kong as commercial ports, and historically,
Shanghai was the most important centre in China for foreign trade
until the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949,
Father's view was that:
With the absence of foreign exchange control and very low
taxation, Hong Kong is also one of the important centres
for capital formation.... In order to retain our advantage
permanently over other localities, such as Shanghai, we
204 Building Bridges
must devote all our resources to constantly upgrading our
financial infrastructure and industrial technology.'
Father thought it preposterous that the delegation of British Mem-
bers of Parliament led by Edward Du Cann, who visited Beijing at the
invitation of the Chinese government in 1982, should even suggest
that the Chinese government begin "negotiations" with London.^ He
thought it was totally unrealistic to expect China to renew treaties
that were obviously unequal. And since the People's Republic of
China had never recognized the Treaty of Nanking of 1842, and the
Conventions of Peking of 1860 and 1898, China had already claimed
sovereignty over Kowloon and Hong Kong. This claim had never
been formally rejected by the British. It was Father's belief that both
sides regarded Hong Kong as part of China under British manage-
ment until July 1, 1997."
Father believed that the future of Hong Kong would depend, in
part, on the population. If they remained productive and could serve
a unique economic function for China and the world, he believed that
a practical and sensible solution could be reached through dialogue
before 1997. The solution had to be formulated more on the basis of
mutual economic interest rather than military power, political ideolo-
gy or even international law. The most important factor was to
perpetuate Hong Kong's independent economic status so that it could
serve as one of the financial centres of the world where modern tech-
nology and know-how could be transferred into China. In order to do
so, laws and commercial practices in their existing forms needed to
continue and the Hong Kong dollar had to remain freely convertible.^
Father ventured a few suggestions for the future government of
Hong Kong:
... the Government of Hong Kong could perhaps be a mod-
ified form of the present system with a Governing
Committee. Hong Kong would be an "Independent Special
Zone" within China under the Chinese flag. The Headship
of the Governing Committee to be taken in turn by a Chi-
nese and a Briton, say, every three or four years. The
modification should be introduced gradually before 1997 to
prevent any shocks due to abrupt changes.... The Legislative
A Look Into The Future 205
Council would continue with some appointed members as
an interim measure for a few years, after which the entire
Council could perhaps be elected.... The Civil Service could,
with careful planning, remain much the same as at present?
In legal matters, Father recommended that the existing laws of
Hong Kong, recognized worldwide, should continue to be enforced
after 1997 with the consent of China. The final appeal for court cases
would not go to Beijing or to London, but to the final court of appeal
created in Hong Kong, and special arrangements would be made for
English judges who were members of the Privy Council to continue
to assist Hong Kong with their services in a new capacity acceptable
to China, United Kingdom and Hong Kong."'
In financial matters, Father believed that Hong Kong had learnt a
lesson from the disaster caused by the Exchange Fund and General
Reserves being tied to sterling under Colonial Regulations. Since the
diversification of the fund in 1972, Hong Kong had become the
world's third largest financial centre. He said in 1982 that:
This advantage should be maintained with full vigour. I
think that is one of the points the Chinese leaders had in
mind when they spoke about preserving Hong Kong's pre-
sent status. When the year of 1997 arrives, the Exchange
Fund must not be transferred to London or to Beijing but
should be kept locally at all times or at any other place
which Hong Kong itself may determine. This will perpetu-
ate the independence of the Hong Kong dollar and
continue to strengthen the confidence in Hong Kong by the
international commercial community."
At Peace with Himself
In a letter written to Father on July 14, 1981, Lord Lawrence
Kadoorie said:
When I look back to immediate post-war Hong Kong and
see it today, I cannot fail to appreciate that it is due to the
confidence and enterprise of people such as yourself and
your family who have made this possible.
206 Building Bridges
We hope you both enjoy good health, long life and every
happiness and that our friendship may continue for many
more years to come.
In 1982, Father decided that he no longer wanted to go out on the
Atalanta. He gave the launch to our long-time coxswain, Ho Ning, so
that he could sell it and use the money to retire" Ho had been with
our family for a very long time, and had watched us and all the grand-
children grow up." On our visit to my parents that year, I couldn't
believe that Father would ever give up his launch, which had been so
dear to his heart for as long as I can remember. What I didn't know
was that the doctor had told him that he was suffering from harden-
ing of the arteries, and should no longer swim. It was just like Father
to want to see Ho Ning happily retired during his own lifetime.
Father had always been proud of the fact that he had good genes
from his own mother, Second Grandmother. I often heard him talk-
ing proudly of his mother's alertness at a great old age, and I do
believe that he thought he would also live a very long time. In a let-
ter to Horace Kadoorie on February 1, 1983， Father wrote:
It is most kind of you to have sent us the tangerines from
your farm each year for the past many years.
My mother, who very soon will be 98, always looks for-
ward in receiving your tangerines for her altar. She is a
Buddhist and is in very good health. She plays 4 rounds of
mahjong every day as exercise...
Mother saw Father smiling to himself early one morning in 1983.
When she asked him why, he said that he had dreamt of Grand-
mother, and she was calling him to her.
In the early summer of 1983, Father's old friend Liao Chengzhi
died. Father was the only person from Hong Kong invited to attend
the funeral, which was held in Beijing. Since Liao was not only a good
friend but someone Father had a great deal of respect for, he would
not have missed the opportunity to pay his last respects.
On June 26, 1983， Fei Yiming saw Father on the top floor of the
Beijing Hotel. Fei needed to write something down but did not have
A Look Into The Future 207
a pen. He borrowed Father's and happened to mention how well the
pen wrote. When they said goodbye, Fei had no idea that it was to be
the last time they would see each other."
Beijing was very hot that summer, the temperature was over 100"F.
On the way back to Hong Kong, the plane was delayed for a few
hours and there was no air-conditioning at the airport. Father was
finding it difficult to breathe.
When Father returned from Beijing, he didn't feel well. He con-
sulted his doctor who immediately sent him to St. Paul's Hospital.
When he arrived at the admitting office, he was asked for an advance
payment of $2,000 as a deposit. Since Father didn't carry cash, he
had to phone his secretary, Anna, to get the money from Mother, with
the strictest order that no one was to be told, not even his brothers."
That day, all the Lee brothers at the Lee Hysan Estate office were
wondering where Father was, because he had never missed a day of
work in his life. Anna could say only that he was not coming in.
However, when the head supervisor at the hospital, Sir Albert
Rodrigues, made his rounds, he saw Father, and he told the Lee
brothers. The following day, they scolded Anna for not telling them.
The doctor ordered Father to rest, an impossible task. Mother
hired a private nurse for him, but he sent her away. He gave the order
that very few people should be told, since he expected to be home
soon. Mother wasn't even allowed to tell us, because he hated any-
one making a fuss. Besides, he never took illness seriously. None of
us knew that he had even been in hospital until after his death.
Of the very few visitors he had were Xinhua News Agency Direc-
tor Xu Jiatun and his deputy, Li Chuwen, who went to see him on July 2.
In the meantime, Father kept threatening to leave the hospital. Moth-
er thought that Director Xu might have some influence and asked him
to persuade Father to stay a few more days. Xu and Li found Father
waiting in a chair to receive them when they entered his hospital
room. Father said he was feeling fine, and that everyone worried too
much." After three days in hospital, he felt restless and wanted to
leave. He gave his doctor an ultimatum: either he was to be discharged
or he would check himself out of hospital, despite the fact that he was
still being given oxygen. It was the morning of July 5.
208 Building Bridges
A luncheon in honour of Director Tucker of the Water Department,
who was retiring, was scheduled for that day at the Lee Gardens
Hotel, and Father insisted on hosting it, even though arrangements
had already been made for the secretary of the China Gas Company
to take his place. Before the luncheon, he asked Anna to get ready all
the cheques that needed to be signed and take them to the hotel. When
Anna saw him, she thought he didn't look well, and noted that he was
speaking more slowly than usual. When she told Aunt Violet, who
was still working in the Lee Hysan Estate office, Aunt Violet said, "If
he wanted to leave hospital, no one could stop him!"
Early on the morning of July 6, Father had his usual breakfast in
the pantry. He got up from the table to get dressed for the office, and
as he walked out of the pantry, he collapsed. An ambulance was
called, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.
When Anna went to work that morning, she walked past Tower
Court as usual because she lived opposite us. Our watchman/chauf-
feur, Ah Lay, said to Anna, "Mr. Lee is gone." Anna said, "Where
did he go?" not realizing what Ah Lay meant. His eyes became red
as he started to cry. Anna found it difficult to believe and was walk-
ing around in a daze when she bumped into Hon Chiu who had just
come out of Caroline Mansion, diagonally opposite to Tower Court.
She asked him what she should do, and he said, "just go back to the
office." Even months after, Anna could not accept Father's death,
and still had the feeling that he would be back. She would look out
the window expecting to see him coming back to the office after hav-
ing his customary lunch at home.'
A friend got into a taxi the morning of July 6, and the taxi dri-
ver told her that Hong Kong had lost a very fine man that morning.
She asked who it was and realized that it was Father who had
passed away.
At seven o'clock in the evening, of July 6, Yao Kang arrived at the
airport from Los Angeles. He was in shock when his driver told him
that Father had passed away. He said, "What am I going to do now?
All my China connections are gone."'^
After dinner on the evening of July 5, in Toronto," I received a call
from Seventh Uncle telling me that Father had passed away. I was
A Look Into The Future 209
completely dumbfounded. We hadn't known that Father had been in
hospital, and besides, everyone expected him to be around forever.
Telegrams poured in from all over the world. The ones from Pres-
ident Li Xiannian, Yang Shangkun, Xi Zhongxun, Gu Mu, Yu Qiuli,
Ji Pengfei, Jing Puchun and Liao Mengxing were reported in the Chi-
nese newspapers.
One day in July, three pens like the one Fei Yiming borrowed from
Father at the Beijing Hotel arrived at Fei's office at Ta Rung Pao. He
was very moved that Father, even though he was ill, had instructed
his secretary to send them to him before his death?
In honour of Father's position as District Grand Master of Hong
Kong and the Far East, a memorial service was to be held by the
masons for him on July 18 at St. John's Cathedral. Neville had to
return to Toronto to attend to his patients, so our eldest son, Ashley,
flew to Hong Kong in his father's place. For that particular service,
Mother decided that all female family members had to be in black
cheongsams, and all the grandsons in black suits. I don't know where
our relatives found tailors to make them, but these garments were
made to order within forty-eight hours.
The day of the memorial service was a very hot, sunny day, and
the Cathedral was filled. The eulogy was given by the Honorable Mr.
Justice Cons. In relating Father's life, he said that, charity, which was
the distinguishing virtue of a freemason, was prominent in Father's
life. One of his first acts as District Grand Master had been to
reassess the existing practices for the collection and distribution of
charity in the District, and place the responsibility in the hands of the
District Board of Benevolence, an organization in which he took the
keenest interest. Father, he said, was more than a very successful
businessman and a man of many talents; he was, first and foremost,
a philanthropist of great generosity who inspired others to con-
tribute. Father's favourite scripture reading in Masonic ceremonies
was St. Paul's paean to charity.-' Father was described as a man of
infinite charm who never failed to arouse an affectionate response in
those with whom he came into contact. His leadership and quiet
authority inspired confidence and enthusiasm in others. He was
quick to praise, but he did not hesitate to criticize whenever he felt a
210 Building Bridges
proper effort had not been made. However, he never lost his com-
passion for his fellow men."
On October 8, another memorial service was held by the freema-
sons in Kobe, Japan, at St. Andrew's Chapel, the Flying Angel. A
telegram of condolence from the mayor of Kobe, Tatsuo Miyazaki,
was read. When Deputy District Grand Master Christopher Haffner
gave the eulogy, he mentioned that Father had always looked upon
Rising Sun Lodge in Kobe with special favour, for this was the lodge
that first responded to his plea to endow medical research fellowships
in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Grand Lodge of Eng-
land. Haffner mentioned Father's relationship to the leaders of China,
and noted that he had been the first Hong Kong resident to be
received by the new Chinese President, Li Xiannian. He said that
Father's common sense approach to the practicalities of Hong Kong's
1997 problem would be sorely missed,'
Father's secretary, Anna, had a number of offers of well-paid posi-
tions because she had worked for Father for more than twelve years
and presumably knew a great deal and had a lot of contacts, but she
turned them all down. To her. Father was irreplaceable. She kept a
small photograph of him smiling, which she said was his best, as well
as some of his papers, a few of which were copies of the Chinese let-
ters she had written on his behalf. She said these were souvenirs, and
she very kindly handed them over to me to use as references for this
book. Anna described Father as a man not without faults, but kind,
honest, upright, and always a gentleman.
Father's death was covered widely in both Chinese and English
newspapers, on television and on the radio. Father's sisters immedi-
ately disconnected Second Grandmother's television set, which she
watched frequently, in order to keep the news from her, and told her
that it was out of order. Since she was illiterate, she didn't read news-
papers. She seldom went out in her later years, and the family and
servants were instructed not to mention Father's death to her. For a
number of years afterwards, whenever she asked why her eldest son
didn't come to see her. Mother made some kind of excuse, and after
a while, she stopped asking. We believe she knew, but didn't want to
have her fears confirmed.
A Look Into The Future 211
It was Father's wish that his ashes be scattered in the Hong Kong
harbour, where he felt he belonged. Mother, in her old-fashioned
way, refused to follow his wishes because she wanted to be buried
next to him.
Father, always referred to by everyone respectfully in Chinese as
"big brother," is greatly missed. During the writing of this book, I
received great help and co-operation because there is still so much
love and respect for him. He was referred to as a "great man," a
"good friend" and even a "legend." Many remember him with grat-
itude and appreciation. Others lamented that his death was a blow to
the Sino-British talks over the sovereignty of Hong Kong.
Even in death, as demonstrated by his funeral, Father built bridges
for China and for Hong Kong, bringing peace and prosperity.
EPILOGUE
In honour of Father, the widow of Premier Zhou Enlai, Deng
Yingchao, nominated Mother as a member of the Chinese People's
Political Consultative Conference, a representative from Hong Kong
to China.
Mother often said, "Even though your father was such an impa-
tient man, and so rigid in his ways, I really can't complain about him,
because he treated me so well." She had always been regarded with
great respect and importance in Father's life. In his tradition of great
generosity, whenever he made an investment, he automatically put
half in Mother's name. Since he was so honest and straightforward,
she came to rely on him completely, and depended on him for all deci-
sions, solutions to all problems, even looking after household bills
and her travel arrangements. She had always assumed that she would
die first, and was not only saddened, and completely lost when he
died, but insulted that she was left behind. It took her months to be
taken off sedatives, but at the age of seventy-four, she did her best to
carry on.
As for me, I wish I had been able to spend more time with Father.
I wish I had asked many more questions than I did, but then I too
expected him to be around for a very long time. I learnt from the
examples he set, and try to live up to his standard. The fact that he
always made it known that he cared will be with me forever. I thank
him for the good name he left me with, and I am very proud to be his
daughter.
213
Richard Charles Lee:
A Career Summary
Graduated from Oxford University, B.A. 1927, M.A. 1932
Appointed Justice of the Peace, 1946
Rice Controller, 1946-48
Order of the British Empire, 1949
Delegate of Hong Kong at the 4th & 5th Sessions, Economic Com-
mission for Asia and the Far East, 1948, 1949
Leader of the Hong Kong Trade Mission to West Africa, 1960
Leader of the Hong Kong Trade Mission to Frankfurt, Germany, 1963
Commander of the British Empire, 1963
LL.D. University of Hong Kong, 1964
LL.D. Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1964
Order of the Sacred Treasure, Japan, 1969
Member Of Hong Kong Government Councils
And Committees:
Panel of Inland Revenue Board of Review, beginning in 1949
Urban Council, 1953-60
Salary Commission, beginning in 1953
Hong Kong Housing Authority, 1954-60
Public Service Commission, 1952-59
Building Regulation Committee, 1953-59
Air Transport Licensing Authority, beginning in 1955
Legislative Council, 1959-65
Executive Council, 1961-66
Advisory Commission on Corruption, 1962-65
Fisheries Development Loan Fund Committee, 1960-65
Board of Education, 1961-66
214
Richard Charles Lee: A Career Summary 215
Masonic Involvement:
President of the Board of Trustees, Hong Kong and South China
Masonic Fund Corporation, 1 961-83
District Grand Master of Hong Kong and the Far East, 1961-83
The University Of Hong Kong:
Member of the Court, beginning in 1948
Member of the Council, beginning in 1954
The Chinese University Of Hong Kong:
Vice-chairman of the Council, 1963-83
Chairman of the Campus Planning Committee, 1963-83
Chairman of the Tender Board, 1963-83
Member of the Nominating Committee for Honorary Degrees, 1963-83
Chairman Of The Board Of Directors:
Associated Properties Ltd.
Canadian and Oriental Oil Ltd.
Duro Holdings Ltd.
Garden Hotels Holdings (Hong Kong) Ltd.
Gande Price Investment Co. Ltd.
Grand Marine Holdings Ltd.
Hong Kong & China Gas Co., Ltd.
Hong Kong Telephone Co. Ltd.
Hong Kong Tube & Metal Products Ltd.
Hysan Development Co. Ltd.
International Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.
Kowloon Taxicab & Transport Co. Ltd.
Kwong Lee Enterprises
Lee Gardens Hotel Ltd.
Lee Hysan Estate Co. Ltd.
RCL Semiconductor Ltd.
Western Trading Co. Ltd.
216 Building Bridges
Deputy Chairman:
N.M. Rothschild & Sons Hong Kong Ltd.
Yamaichi International (Hong Kong) Ltd.
Director:
Associated Bankers Insurance Co. Ltd.
Bank of East Asia Ltd.
Eastern Asia Navigation Co. Ltd.
Hong Kong Building &: Loan Agency Ltd.
Hong Kong Land Investment & Agency Co. Ltd.
Hong Kong Realty &c Trust Co. Ltd.
The Textile Corporation of Hong Kong
Wheelock Marden & Co. Ltd.
&C other companies
Other:
Chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Property Owners
Chairman of the Hong Kong Country Club, 1963-1964
Chairman of the South China Athletic Association
Director and Honorary Lifetime Director of the Szeyup Business
Association
Director of the Wan Chai (Kaifong) Benevolent Association
Honorary Member, Chinese Business Association
Honorary Lifetime Member, College of Chinese Engineers
Honorary Lifetime Member, Hong Kong Country Club
Honorary Lifetime Member, Hong Kong Japanese Club
Lifetime Director, Sunwui Business Association
Member of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce,
1960-1968
Member of Permanent Board of Directors, Po Leung Kuk, 1959-1960
Vice-president, Po Leung Kuk, 1960-1966
Richard Charles Lee: A Career Summary 217
List Of Richard Charles Lee's Siblings
Second Uncle - Ming Hop
Third Uncle - Harold, Hau Wo (Wing Gun)
Fourth Uncle - Jung Sen (J.S.)
Fifth Uncle - Wing Kit
Sixth Uncle - Jung Kang (J.K.)
Seventh Uncle - Wing Tat
Second Aunt - Doris, Shun Wah
Third Aunt - Ansie, Shun Ying
Fourth Aunt - Joyce, Shun Kum
Fifth Aunt - Dione, Shun Yin
Sixth Aunt - Amy, Shun Ho
Seventh Aunt - Diana, Shun Yee
Eighth Aunt - Vivien, Shun Ngor
218
219
220
ENDNOTES
A Farewell
1 Hong Kong Standard, July 7, 1983.
2 South China Morning Post, July 7， July 12， 1983.
Chapter 1
1 All Uncles and Aunts preceded by a number are siblings of Father.
2 A village in south China, it is also the Lee family's original ancestral village.
Chinese tend to be very clannish, and I am sure Father was very proud that
these two men were from the same area as our family.
3 Zibao Xuexiao Nianbao (Zibao School Magazine), July 31, 1921, 5-7.
4 Letter from Percy O'Brien, Oxford, October 17， 1997.
5 V.H.H. Green, A History of Oxford (London, 1974)， 188-189.
6 Letter from Percy O'Brien, Oxford, October 17, 1997.
7 Letter from Percy O'Brien, Oxford, October 30, 1997.
8 Letter from Percy O'Brien, Oxford, October 30, 1997.
9 Letter from Percy O'Brien, Oxford, October 17, 1997.
10 Konosuke Koike, article in Yamabiko, a bi-monthly newspaper published by
Yamaichi Securities Co. Ltd., circulated only among the Yamaichi Group,
Sept. 7， 1971, translated by Shinichi Shiraishi, Deputy President of Yamaichi
Securities Co. Ltd.
Chapter 2
1 Interview with Josephine Chiu and Jenny Hoo, Vancouver, April 1997.
2 Interview with Jenny Hoo, Vancouver, April 1997.
3 Zhang Lianjue (Lady Clara Hotung), Mingshan Youji {Memories on Famous
Mountains) (Hong Kong, 1934), 105.
4 A photograph of Father supervising the workers was taken in 1931.
Interview with George Todkill, who used to work for Whampoa Dockyard,
Hong Kong, June 1997.
5 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
6 Interview with Josephine Chiu and Jenny Hoo, Vancouver, April 1997.
7 Chungshee H. Liu, Hainan, The Island and the People ( Shanghai, 1939).
8 Wang Shaoping, Feidao Qiongya Yinxiang Ji {Philipines and Hainan
Impressions) (Hong Kong, 1939), 81. Wang was one of the investors in
Father's company.
9 Wang Shaoping, Feidao, 66-7.
10 Wang Shaoping, Feidao, 69.
■11 Wang Shaoping, Feidao, 81.
221
222 Building Bridges
12 Wang Shaoping, Feidao, 89-90.
13 Interview with He Mingsi, former secretary of the Xinhua News Agency
who often accompanied my parents during their travels in China, Hong
Kong, January 1996.
14 Names such as Shen Yi, who was Chairman of the Technology
Department of Chinese Resources Committee (CRC) and Minister of
Communications Bureau; Qian Changzhou, Vice-Chairman of the (CRC)
and Jiang Pingbo, Purchasing Manager of the CRC. Interview with
C.T.Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
15 He was well known for establishing precision for train schedules by using
Omega equipment and was highly respected by Chiang Kaishek.
16 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
17 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
18 Phone interview with Sir Jack Cater in Hong Kong, June, 1997.
19 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
20 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Summer 1995.
Chapter 3
1 Xie Yongguang, Xianggang Kangri Fengyun Lu (Hong Kong, 1995),
72-73.
2 Tim Carew, The Fall of Hong Kong (London, 1960), 26-27.
3 Xie Yongguang, Xianggang Kangri Fengyun Lu, 96.
4 Ted Ferguson, Desperate Siege: The Battle of Hong Kong (Toronto, 1980), 5.
5 Ferguson, Desperate Siege, 6-7.
6 Sir Selwyn Selwyn- Clarke, Footprints: The Memoirs of Sir Selwyn Selwyn-
Clarke (Hong Kong, 1975), 58.
7 Interview with Jeanne Tarn, who was then known as Tsui Ling Fai. She
was one of the air-raid wardens. Toronto, January 1996.
8 Interview with Bill Poy， Toronto, November 1996.
9 Ferguson, Desperate Siege, 7.
10 Son of Liao Zhongkai, leader of the left-wing Nationalist party.
1 1 Interview with Lian Weilin, former Director of the Xinhua News Agency
(New China News Agency, or NCNA)， Hong Kong branch, Guangzhou,
November 1996.
12 Interview with He Mingsi, former Secretary of the Xinhua News Agency,
Hong Kong Branch, Hong Kong, January 1996,
13 Selwyn-Clarke, Footprints, 64.
14 She was single and working under her maiden name, Elizabeth Tcng.
15 Interview with Joseph Tarn, Toronto, January 1996.
16 Interview with Joseph Tarn, Toronto, January 1996.
Endnotes 223
17 David Faure, co-ordinator, and the members of the Oral History Project
Team, Centre for East Asian Studies, The Chinese University of Hong
Kong, "Saikung, The Making of the District and its Experience During
World War II," Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Asiatic Society,
vol. 22, 1982, 184-185.
18 Interview with Bill Poy, Toronto, November 1996.
19 Selwyn-Clarke, Footprints^ 65.
20 The entire story of the Poy family experience during the attack and
surrender of Hong Kong was told by Bill Poy, Toronto, November 1996.
21 Interview with Joseph Tam, Toronto, January 1996.
22 He wanted to remain in Hong Kong to take care of the medical needs of
the population. He was accused by some of being a collaborator and was
later interned by the Japanese.
23 Interview with Joseph Tam, Toronto, January 1996.
24 Jiang Shui, "Husong He Xiangning, Liao Chengzhi Muziliang De
Jingguo," Huoyao Zai Xiang Jiang: Gangjiu Dadiii Xigong Diqii Kangri
Shi Lu {Anti- Japanese Activities of the Hong Kong-Kowloon Brigade in
Saikung), ed. by Xu Yueqing (Hong Kong, 1993), 22-26.
25 Jiang Shiu, Huoyao Zai Xiang Jiang, 20-21.
26 Edwin Ride, B.A.A.G., Hong Kong Resistance, 1942-1945 (Hong Kong,
1981), p. 27, footnote 2； p. 17; p.29, footnote 17.
27 Wang set up the puppet regime in Nanjing as an alternative to Chiang's in
Chongqing.
28 Ride, B.A.A.G., 31-44.
29 Col. L.T. Ride, Report on the Activities of a M.I. 9/19 Organization in
South China by Colonel L.T. Ride, lately Commandant B.A.A.G., written
at Whitehall for the War Office, 1946, Public Record No. WO 208/3260,
Section B.
30 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
31 Interview with Lian Weilin, Guangzhou, November 1996.
32 Interview with He Mingsi, Hong Kong, January 1996.
Chapter 4
1 Selwyn-Clarke, Sir Selwyn, Footprints: The Memoirs of Sir Selwyn Selwyn-
Clarke (Hong Kong, 1975), 69.
2 Interview with Joseph Tam, Toronto, January 1996.
3 Interview with Raymand Lee, Vancouver, February 1997.
4 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, October 1996.
5 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, October 1996.
6 Interview with Bill Poy, Toronto, November 1996.
7 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
224 Building Bridges
8 Interview with Bill Poy, Toronto, November 1996.
9 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, October 1996.
10 They are filled with silk fibres instead of eiderdown and are very light and warm.
11 From Guizhou to Guilin.
12 Ling Hongxun, Shi Zhiren, Hon Jiayuan, Yuan Menghong.
13 Father never joined any political party.
14 The position was given to him by Cheng Goonshing who was married to
Second Aunt. Yong Guang Coal Company was very profitable because of
the need for coal for the railways and their sales were guaranteed. Tan
Nailiang, Cheng's nephew, was the accountant. Tan and C.T. Wu lived in a
bamboo-mud house right by the office of the Company.
15 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
16 C.T. Wu participated in the supervision of this building.
17 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
18 C.T. Wu was very happy to have a free economy railway pass. He was always
welcomed by the railway staff because of his love of ping-pong. He said there
really weren't too many forms of entertainment available during the war, and
ping-pong was one of them. The games usually lasted much longer than the
work supervision. Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
19 General Manager of Guo Hua Bank, and an influential person in financial
circles, both in China and among overseas Chinese.
20 Chairman of the Overseas Union Bank of Singapore.
21 General Manager of the Overseas Union Bank of Singapore.
22 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
23 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
24 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
25 Third Uncle was a director.
26 Letter from Sing Sheng, Hong Kong, October 1997.
27 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
28 Interview with Josephine Chiu, Vancouver, April 1997.
29 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
Chapter 5
1 Every five days, each person was allowed one catty and four taels of rice,
one catty of flour and half a catty of green peas. 1 catty = 1.32 pounds; 1
tael = 1.33 ounces.
2 Reported in Wah Km Yat Po between 1946-48.
3 C.T. Wu expressed the opinion that if it had been anybody else who had
that post, he would have made a fortune, but Father would not even think
of a profit for himself. Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
4 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
Endnotes 225
5 Doctors with non-Commonwealth training were not allowed to practise in
Hong Kong.
6 In 1963 Sing Sheng renewed his relationship with my family when he was
offered a position as Director of Sales and Marketing for the Mandarin
Hotel in Hong Kong. He married Dorothy's sister Grace.
7 Letter from Sing Sheng from Hong Kong, October 14, 1997.
8 Wah Kilt Yat Po, July 2, 7, 12, 23, 1951; August 9, 1951; November 5,
1951; February 23, 1952; April 1， 15, 27, 1952; June 16, 1952; July 12，
15, 16, 19, 20, 29, 1952； January 10, 16, 1953； March 15, 31, 1953; May
10， 17, 31, 1953.
9 Wiih Kin Yat Po, June 2， 1953.
10 Wah Kilt Yat Po, March 23, 1961.
11 In 1941 one-quarter of the workforce in Hong Kong was already engaged
in industrial manufacturing.
12 At the time of the Japanese surrender, the population was at 500 thousand.
In 1949, it reached 2 million.
13 A Communist college which recruited for the Party in China and Southeast
Asia was closed in 1949. Very few schools were closed by the Hong Kong
government until 1967, but schools were inspected regularly for
"subversive" activities.
14 Alexander Grantham, Via Port (Hong Kong, 1965), 115.
Chapter 6
1 Interview with Anna Li, Father's last secretary, Los Angeles, April 1995.
1 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, April 1995.
Chapter 7
1 Sue Heady, The Hong Kong Country Club (Hong Kong, 1992), 2.
2 Heady, Hong Kong Country Club, 13-14.
3 Heady, Hong Kong Country Club, 79.
4 Heady, Hong Kong Country Club, 16-17.
5 Heady, Hong Kong Country Club, 20.
6 Hong Kong Stmdard, December 14, 1972.
7 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
Chapter 8
1 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
2 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
3 Wah Kilt Yat Po, July 31, 1 956.
4 Interview with J.S. Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
5 Interview with Peter Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
6 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, November 1996.
226 Building Bridges
7 Between 5 to 10 percent. Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, November 1996.
8 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, February 1997.
9 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, February 1997.
10 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, February 1997.
11 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
12 John Swire & Sons Limited was established in the United Kingdom in
1816. The company established Butterfield & Swire Co. in Shanghai on
January 1, 1867, importing cotton and woolen fabrics and exporting tea
and silk from China. In 1872, Swire established China Navigation
Company (C.N.Co.). After the Second World War, the company's centre of
business moved to Hong Kong. In July 1946, Swire and Maclaine Ltd. was
established for import/export business. The company established Taikoo
Wharf and Godown Company in June 1947. In 1948, it acquired a
majority share of Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. The company is also
involved in manufacturing and engineering industries, beverages,
properties, insurance, agriculture and retailing.
13 Registered in Hong Kong on October 19, 1948.
14 The company was founded in 1948.
15 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, February 1997. It was a major
innovation in business practice and land law; the basis of much of Hong
Kong's economic growth in subsequent decades.
16 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
17 I am sure its connection with the Shanghai Commercial Bank helped.
18 It was a wire (cable) commercial service in Hong Kong.
19 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
20 Interview with Raymand Lee, Vancouver February 1997.
21 In Hong Kong, bosses do not ride in delivery trucks. Interview with Hon
Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, November 1996.
22 This was subsequently sold by the family in the 1990s.
23 Note from Chien Lee, Hong Kong, January 1998.
24 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
25 Note from Chien Lee, Hong Kong, January 1998.
26 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, November 1996.
27 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
28 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
29 The Hong Kong stock market crashed in 1973, followed by a worldwide
oil crisis, which brought economic recession until 1976.
30 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, November 1996.
31 The company was originally incorporated in October 1970 as a private
limited company under the name of Hennessy Development Company
Endnotes 227
Limited, and was a wholly owned subsidiary of Lee Hysan Estate which
was incorporated in 1924.
32 The original board consisted of Father as the chairman, and directors
David P. Chan, F.K. Hu, Michael Jebsen, Per Jorgensen, T.S. Kwok, Hon
Chiu Lee, J.S. Lee, Quo Wai Lee, Ian Robert Anderson and Geoffrey M.T.
Yeh.
33 Total area of 80,881 sq. ft. Grandfather had originally bought this
property in the names of Grandmother and his first four sons - Father,
Second Uncle, Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle. To the credit of the Lee
family, the property was given back to the family company, Lee Hysan
Estate Co., for the benefit of all family members. In fact, it was also to the
credit of Grandmother who turned over all the properties in her name to
all the children during her life time.
34 At the end of 1997, besides many other positions, Hon Chiu Lee was
elected chairman of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
35 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
Chapter 9
1 A new airport was originally planned for Ping Shan in the New Territories.
However, the colonial government realized that planes taking off and
landing would have to circle over Chinese territories, and could be shot
down. In fact, in the 1950s some civilian aircraft were shot down. The
new runway in Kai Tak airport, which was capable of accommodating the
largest jets, ran out into the sea at Kowloon Bay. It was completed at the
end of the 1950s.
2 At present the chairman and CEO of the Bank of East Asia.
3 Notes from S. Shiraishi, Osaka, March 1997.
4 Since the 1970s, they were the opthamologists who looked after the eyes
of the top leaders of China, including Deng Xiaoping.
5 Apparently this practice was only allowed to revive in 1978, after having
been banned for twenty years.
Chapter 10
1 Alexander Grantham, Via Ports (Hong Kong, 1965), 188-189.
2 Interview with He Mingsi, Hong Kong, January 1996.
3 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
4 Letter from Ruth Hayhoe to her mother, July 17, 1967.
5 Appointed Director of the Institute of Education in Hong Kong in 1997,
and simultaneously is Professor of Comparative Education at the Ontario
Institute of Education, University of Toronto.
6 Letter from Ruth Hayhoe to her mother, October 28, 1967.
228 Building Bridges
7 Interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997. The chairman. Sir
Adrian Swire, was in Hong Kong at the time. Yao, as a junior manager,
told Sir Adrian that since these were political riots, the chances were that
the material damage would not be large, and besides, the company should
not let their clients down just when they needed help most. With the
powers delegated to the Hong Kong company, it had the right to make its
own decisions. As a result, Swire maintained riot insurance for its clients,
and in the end, not a cent was lost by the company, and Swire gained a lot
of public confidence.
8 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
9 Interview with Lian Weilin, Guangzhou, November 1996; article by Fei
Yiming, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze" ("Remembering R.C. Lee"), Ta Kung
Pcio, July 16， 1983.
10 Interview with David K.P. Li, Hong Kong, November 1996.
11 Letter from Ruth Hayhoe to her mother, July 3, 1968.
12 Bernard Luk, "The Rise of a Civil Society in Hong Kong," presented at the
Human Rights and Democracy in Asia Conference, Joint Centre for Asia
Pacific Studies, 16-17 May, 1997.
13 The word "Royal" was added to the Hong Kong Police Force only after
the disturbances of 1967. Sir Jack Cater, Hong Kong, June 1997.
14 Notes from Sir Jack Cater provided by Lady Cater, Hong Kong, August
1997.
15 Luk, "The Rise of a Civil Society in Hong Kong."
16 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, April 1995.
17 Ta Kung Pao, January 29, 1977.
18 Interview with Dr. Chi Chao Chan, Baltimore, October 1997.
19 The population increased four fold between 1945 and 1949.
20 It became associated with Yale University.
21 Alice N.H. Lun Ng, editor, The Quest for Excellence (Hong Kong, 1994),
18.
22 Ng, Quest for Excellence, 20-21.
23 Ng, Quest for Excellence, 25.
24 Interview with Prof. Ma Lin, Hong Kong, June 1997.
25 Interview with Prof. Ma Lin, Hong Kong, June 1997.
26 Established in October 1951 by representatives of Protestant churches.
27 Minutes of the Campus Committee meetings from 1964 to 1983. Provided
by Vincent W.S. Chen of the Campus Committee of The Chinese
University of Hong Kong.
28 Interview with Prof. Ma Lin, Hong Kong, June 1997.
29 Interview with Prof. Ma Lin, Hong Kong, June 1997.
Endnotes 229
Chapter 11
1 Interview with Reiko Ogata, Hong Kong, June 1997.
2 Interview with Reiko Ogata, Hong Kong, June 1997.
3 Achievement Report from the Consulate-General of Japan sent to the
Japanese government, 1968.
4 In 1969 a Japanese Chamber of Commerce was established, separate from
the Club.
5 Interview with Y. Yoshioka, Secretary General of the Hong Kong Japanese
Club, Hong Kong, June 1997.
6 Notes from S. Shiraishi of Yamaichi Securities, Osaka, Japan, March 1997.
7 The latter was to move into the Lee Gardens Hotel podium upon its
completion across the street.
8 Established on October 2, 1965.
9 In 1975, the Japanese School moved into its own building at 157 Blue
Pool Road.
10 Special guests were Father, Consul-General of Japan Mr. Endo, Deputy
Director of the Department of Education Sir Y.K.Kan as Chinese
representative, and Sir Kenneth Fung Ping Fun who successfully persuaded
the Hong Kong government to allow the Japanese School to teach pupils
in accordance with the formal school curriculums laid down by the
Japanese government.
11 Ichiro Fujita, The Twentieth Anniversary Special Issue of the Hong Kong
Japanese School, May 10, 1986, 39， translated by Y. Yoshioka, Secretary
General of the Hong Kong Japanese Club. The original article appeared in
Phoenix Publication no. 13.
12 In 1994, it was demolished and rebuilt as part of Caroline Centre.
13 Fujita, The Twentieth Anniversary Special Issue of the Hong Kong
Japanese School, 39.
14 It is associated with the sacred mirror and the string of gems with gold
rays, which is only used for higher grades of decorations. Notes from Y.
Yoshioka, Hong Kong, August 1997.
15 Christopher Haffner, The Craft in the East (Hong Kong, 1988), dedicated
to Father, 424.
■16 Interview with Sir Quo Wai Lee, October 1996.
17 That was when Project 704 (April 1970) in Hangzhou started construction.
It was an underground military complex, built to withstand nuclear attack,
covering fifty acres, with two beautiful above-ground buildings, one for
Lin and the other for Mao. The project might not have been built with a
plot in mind (to hold Mao hostage), but it could be used for that purpose.
In August 1970 in Lushan, Mao shot down Lin s effort to declare him
the "genius of the world" in another of Lin's repeated attempts to make
230 Building Bridges
him into a figurehead. Lin knew that it was time to act and commenced
Project 571, a homonym for "armed uprising."
It is likely that the plot against Mao began in the spring of 1971 in
Suzhou, when Lin Biao, his wife, Ye Qun, and their twenty-six-year-old
son, Lin Liguo, were vacationing. The conspiracy was to be under the
command of Lin Liguo. According to the official government version, the
original plot was to feign an attack on Mao, and Lin Liguo would "rescue"
him. Zhou Enlai, Jiang Qing, Kang Sheng and some other key military
leaders would be neutralized. The plan was abandoned because Lin did not
have enough manpower to carry it out.
They then planned to assassinate Mao on his special train during his tour
of south and central China. Lin depended on the military where he had
been gathering supporters ever since he replaced Peng Dehuai in 1959 as
defence minister. The airforce was to be the main component of this coup.
Mao got wind of the plot, changed his schedule and sped through
Shanghai, arriving in Beijing on the morning of September 12.
On September 11， Lin Biao and Ye Qun were at the seaside resort of
Beidaihe, approximately 130 miles east of Beijing, awaiting word. Late that
evening, the telephone rang with the news. Ye Qun immediately packed her
bag, taking with her two dictionaries: English-Chinese and Russian-
Chinese. Around five o'clock the same day, their son, Lin Liguo, had flown
in from Beijing in a Trident three-engine plane, number 256. The plane had
been assigned for Lin Biao's personal use. A crew of three had been
assigned to it on September 6, and was told to be ready to take off at seven
the next morning.
On the evening of September 12, after postponing a meeting with a
delegation from Japan, Zhou Enlai received a call from Security Unit 8341
that Lin Biao, Ye Qun and Lin Liguo appeared to be leaving the country.
Within the next half hour, Zhou ordered all planes grounded in China, and
specifically the Trident assigned to Lin. According to one account, Zhou
telephoned the Lins at Beidaihe to inquire about their health. They realized
that Mao and Zhou were too close on the trail. Around midnight, the three
airmen were awakened to prepare for immediate take-off. Aside from the
Lins, there were three others who boarded the plane.
Mao was at the Swimming Pool House at Zhongnanhai when Zhou
burst in to tell him that the Trident had taken off. Zhou suggested shooting
it down, since it would still be in China's air space. Mao is reported to have
said, "Let nature take its course."
Harrison E. Salisbury, The New Emperors (New York, 1993), 284-303.
18 Akira Okada, Mizutori Gaiko Hiwa (The Secret Story of Mizutori's
Diplomacy) (Tokyo, 1983), 149-161. Translated into Chinese by the staff
of the Hang Seng Bank, Hong Kong.
19 Interview with Sir Quo Wai Lee, October 1996.
20 Founded in 1897.
Endnotes 231
21 Notes from S. Shiraishi, March 1997. Shiraishi was the sales manager in
Hong Kong under Shigeki Morishita when Yamaichi International (H.K.)
opened.
22 Until September 1982, when Yamaichi International (H.K.) became wholly
owned by Yamaichi.
23 Notes from S. Shiraishi, February 1997.
24 At the time of the writing of this book, he is deputy president of Yamaichi
Securities Co. Ltd., one of the four largest securities companies in Japan.
25 Between 1971-73.
26 Notes from S. Shiraishi, Osaka, March 1997.
27 Notes from S. Shiraishi, Osaka, March 1997.
28 Interview with Reiko Ogata, Hong Kong, June 1997.
29 Letter to Father from Shigeru Okada, president of Mitsukoshi Limited,
September 3, 1981. Mitsukoshi was established in 1673 and incorporated
in 1904.
30 Asian Economic News, December 22, 1997. Core Pacific is a group of engi-
neering and securities companies led by Taiwanese businessman Tony Shen.
31 Letter from S. Shiraishi, January 11, 1998.
32 Asian Economic News, December 22, 1997.
Chapter 12
1 Christopher Haffner, The Craft in the East (Hong Kong, 1988), 422.
2 Interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997.
3 At the same time, world-class reservoirs continued to be built, and
desalinization of sea water was being carried out.
4 Interview with Li an Weilin, Guangzhou, November 1996.
5 Ta Kimg Pao, May through June 1963.
6 Ta Kung Pao, May 31, 1963.
7 Ta Kung Pao, April 23, 1964.
8 Wah Kin Yat Po, January 3, 1965.
9 1 cubic metre equals approximately 220 gallons.
10 Ta Kung Pao, April 21, 1965.
11 Interview with Lian Weilin, Guangzhou, November 1996.
12 Hong Kong Standard, June 28, 1967.
13 Hong Kong Standard, July 13, 1967.
14 1 cubic metre equals approx. 220 gallons.
15 The Times, July 8， 1983.
16 Interview with David K.P. Li, Hong Kong, November 1996.
17 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996. She remained a
secretary in the family company, Lee Hysan Estate, until her retirement at
232 Building Bridges
the age of sixty-five. Father used to give her a ride home every day after
work, and he would tell her about confidential matters which he would
not repeat in his office.
18 Member of the Legislative Council, member of the Executive Council,
member of the Advisory Committee on Corruption and member of the
Fisheries Development Loan Fund Committee.
19 Wah Kin Yat Po, June 14, 1965.
20 Interview with David K.P. Li, Hong Kong, November 1996.
21 Fei Yiming, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze" ("Remembering R.C. Lee"), Ta
Kimg Pao, July 16， 1983.
22 Interview with Sir Quo Wai Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996. The person
who divulged this information cannot be named because he is still living.
23 Address given by Richard Charles Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to
China" at the International Conference on the Economic Opportunities in
Hong Kong, held at the Gravenbruch-Kempinski Hotel, Frankfurt, June
14-15， 1982.
24 Interview with Lian Weilin, Guangzhou, November 1996.
25 Celebrity Monthly, January 1979, 24.
26 Ta Kung Pao, January 11, 1978.
27 Letter from Prof. Ma Lin, November 27, 1997.
28 Ta Kung Pao, March 24， 1978.
29 Interview with Prof. Ma Lin, Hong Kong, June 1997.
30 Young Chinese tend to slur the distinction between the "n" and "1"
sounds, and thus cause great confusion.
31 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, April 1995.
32 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, April 1995.
33 Yao Kang joined the Shanghai office of Swire in 1948, straight out of
university. He was sent to England to train in the cadet program. He was
the first local to be picked for this program which was usually reserved for
Oxbridge graduates. In 1951， when the Korean War started, Swire was no
longer willing to send its specialists to China. Yao was asked if he would
like to go back. In his early twenties, he became the manager for Swire's
China insurance operations, based in Shanghai, with branch offices in
Tianjin, Qingdao, Hankou, Xiamen and Shantou. In 1953 he
recommended that Swire get out of China, because he felt there was no
future. The company followed his advice and withdrew from China. Yao
arrived in Hong Kong at Christmas 1953. By the time Yao retired, he was
chairman of six Swire subsidiary companies.
34 Interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997.
35 CITIC is the best-regarded and the most international company owned by
Beijing, with twenty subsidiaries in China and abroad and a total of
26,000 employees. Its assets total US$5 billion. Abroad, the company
Endnotes 233
concentrates on development of natural resources and communications. An
example is Citifor in Seattle, Washington, one of the major suppliers of
timber in the northwest United States. Other business interests include
China Light & Power, Dragon Air, Hong Kong Telecom, trading,
distribution and property, mainly in Hong Kong, Macau and mainland
China. It is a publicly traded company listed on the Hong Kong stock
exchange. The friendship between Yao and Wei is, "The reason why Swire
Pacific is so close to CITIC. They have many joint ventures." Yao Kang,
Hong Kong, June 1997.
36 Passengers could get on the train in Hong Kong and go through
immigration in Guangzhou when they arrived, without being stopped at
border check-points.
37 Director from 1978-82.
38 Interview with Wang Kuang, Guangzhou, November 1996.
39 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
40 Letter to Father from H.A. Washcheck, Senior Vice-President of the Bank
of America, September 4, 1980.
41 Fei Yiming, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze" ("Remembering R.C. Lee"), Ta
Kung Pao, July 16, 1983.
42 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
43 The agreement stipulated that the ownership of the hotel revert to China
after fifteen years. This was later extended to twenty years.
44 A Supplemental Agreement was signed on May 3, 1983.
45 Referred to as Garden Guest House in the Joint Venture Agreement.
46 Joint Venture Agreement on the Construction and Operation of Garden
Guest House in Guangzhou between Guangzhou Lingnan Enterprises
Company and Garden Hotels (Holdings) Limited, March 28, 1980.
47 Supplemental Agreement between Guangzhou Lingnan Enterprises Company
and Garden Hotels (Holdings) Limited in respect of the joint venture for the
construction and operation of the Garden Hotel, May 3, 1983.
48 Ta Kimg Pao, December 27, 1980.
49 This apparently was insisted on by the Chinese side of the joint venture.
Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
50 Interview with C.T. Wu, Toronto, Spring 1995.
51 By its completion, there was a cost overrun of 80 per cent. At its
completion, the cost was $1.5 billion. Interview with Yao Kang, Hong
Kong, June 1997.
52 She was therefore Vice-Chairman of the Board of the Garden Hotel,
Guangzhou.
53 Interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997.
54 It was Father's plan to establish a liaison office in Tokyo which would be
run by Reiko Ogata.
234 Building Bridges
55 In 1997, the Japanese Consulate was still there, and even though the
American Consulate has moved out, their Cultural Centre is still in the
Garden Hotel complex. Interview with Reiko Ogata, Hong Kong, June 1997.
56 $700 million.
57 Chinese Government guest house in Beijing where senior government
officials entertain V.I. P. guests. The name in Chinese depicts a platform
where the Emperor did his fishing inside the inner palace.
58 Interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997.
59 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, Spring 1995.
Chapter 13
1 Berta Manson in the "Empire Builders," a series that appeared in the
South China Morning Post, October 26, 1975.
2 South China Morning Post, October 26, 1975.
3 This was a new phenomenon in the early 1970s in Hong Kong, which
culminated in the crash of 1973,
4 TlI Kiing Pao, January 1, 1972.
5 South China Morning Post, October 26, 1975.
6 Address given by R.C. Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China" at
the International Conference on the Economic Opportunities in Hong
Kong, held at Gravenbruch-Kempinski Hotel, Frankfurt, June 14-15,
1982.
7 For Chinese New Year, homes are decorated with budding peach or plum
trees, in the same way Christmas trees decorate the homes of Westerners. If
the flowers open on New Year's Day, it is considered a sign of prosperity
for that year.
8 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, Spring 1995.
9 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, October 1996.
10 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, October 1996.
11 Wah Kin Yat Po, April 1, I960.
12 Wah Km Yat Po, March 19, 1963.
13 Wah Kiu Yat Po, March 19, 1963.
14 Opening speech of the Hong Kong Tube & Metal Products, Ltd.
15 Interview with Violet Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
16 Ta Kung Pao, August 20, 1964.
17 Celebrity Monthly, August 1979, 24.
18 Ta Kung Pao, 1955, 1956, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963.
19 Ta Kung Pao, January, February and April 1963.
20 Letter to Father from the secretary of Victoria City Development Co. Ltd.,
January 6, 1964.
21 Ta Kung Pao, June 24， 1965.
Endnotes 235
22 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
23 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
24 The Chinese government was not planning to let political unrest spill over
from China to Hong Kong.
25 By 1997, the third cross-harbour tunnel was completed. Hon Chiu Lee,
Hong Kong, January 1996.
26 Fei Yiming, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze" (" Remembering R.C. Lee"), Ta
Kimg Pao, July 16, 1983.
27 This was also the turning point in the urban history of Hong Kong, the
change from two cities into one.
28 Interview with Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, January 1996.
29 He was chairman until December 1975, when G.R. Ross took over.
30 Wah Km Yat Po, March 31， 1967.
31 Jardine Fleming & Company Limited is a restricted licence bank, owned
jointly by Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited and Robert Fleming
Holdings Limited. Established in 1970, it was the first merchant bank in
Hong Kong.
32 Interview with David K. P. Lee, Hong Kong, November 1996.
33 Wah Km Yat Po, March 31, 1970.
34 During the 1950s and 1960s when telephone lines were in chronically
short supply, bribery was rampant, probably even institutionalized.
35 Phone interview with Sir Jack Cater, Hong Kong, June 1997.
36 Jack Cater went to Hong Kong right after the war as part of the postwar
military administration. He met Father at that time and they became good
friends. His term as Commissioner of ICAC actually started in October
1973 and lasted until October 1978, when he became Chief Secretary. He
was subsequently knighted.
37 Fei, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze."
38 Ta Kiing Pao, July 29, 1975.
39 Ta Kung Pao, July and August 1975.
40 Note from Hon Chiu Lee, Hong Kong, August 1997.
41 Robin Hutcheon, The Blue Flame, Hong Kong, 1987.
42 Fei "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze."
43 Hutcheon, Blue Flame, 128.
44 Letter from Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, London, June 11, 1997.
45 Letter to Father from Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, London, December 4,
1979.
46 Notes from Per Jorgensen, Copenhagen, June 1997.
47 Notes from Per Jorgensen, Copenhagen, June 1997.
48 Interview with Greta Li, Vancouver, April 1997.
49 Far Eastern Economic Review, July 8, 1993.
236 Building Bridges
50
51
52
53
54
Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
The company is based in London and is the only major securities business
in the United Kingdom to have remained an independent partnership. In
the past thirty years, the company has opened offices in eleven other
financial centres. The one in Hong Kong was opened in 1974. Worldwide,
the company has more than one thousand employees in three areas of
business: corporate finance, institutional brokering and fund management.
Yao Kang, Hong Kong, February 1998.
Ta Kimg Pao, August 4, 1981.
Interview with Professor Paul Lin, who was the former Vice-chancellor of
the University of East Asia in Macao during the 1980s, Vancouver, April
1997; interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997. Both Prof. Lin
and Yao Kang were directors of COOL.
Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
Chapter 14
1 Christopher Haffner, The Craft in the East, rev. ed. (Hong Kong, 1988),
252.
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Haffner, Craft
Haffner, Craft
Haffner, Craft
the East, Preface.
the East, Preface.
the East, 422.
Haffner, Craft in the East, 422.
Haffner, Craft in the East, 422.
Haffner, Craft in the East, 425.
Haffner, Craft i" the East, 422.
Haffner, Craft in the East, 424.
Haffner, Craft in the East, 362-364.
District Grand Lodge of Hong Kong & the Far East, Spring Newsletter
1997, from the Deputy District Grand Master, W. Bro. Yao Kang.
Chapter 15
1 The economic recession in North America in the early 1980s deterred
potential emigrants. However, after 1986, with Xu Jiatun's opposition to
elections in Hong Kong, and with economic upturn in North America,
emigration became massive.
2 Address given by R.C. Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China," at
the International Conference on the Economic Opportunities in Hong
Kong, held at the Gravenbruch-Kempinski Hotel, Frankfurt, June 14-15,
1982.
3 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
4 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
5 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
Endnotes 237
6 The United Kingdom and People's Republic of China delegations agreed at
the United Nations in 1971 to remove Hong Kong from United Nations'
list of colonies. Talks on Hong Kong were to be carried out bilaterally.
7 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
8 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
9 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
10 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
11 Lee, "The Importance of Hong Kong to China."
12 I met the brother of the person who bought the Atalanta in June 1997, in
Hong Kong. His name is Ah Ming and he is the coxswain of R. G. Ross,
Chairman of Deacon & Co. I learnt that for a number of years, the
Atalanta was available for hire for launch picnics. I also learnt that Ho
Ning, in his later years, became the big brother for all the young men who
wanted to work towards being coxswains for the wealthy.
13 By the time he came to work for us my older brother, Richard, and sister,
Deanna, had already gone to England to study.
14 Fei Yiming, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze" ("Remembering R.C. Lee"), Ta
Kung Pao, July 16, 1983.
15 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, Spring 1995.
16 Xu Jiatun, Xii Jiatun Xianggang Huiyi Lu (Xu ]iatnn s Hong Kong
Memoirs), (Hong Kong, 1993)， 43.
17 Interview with Anna Li, Los Angeles, Spring 1995.
18 Interview with Yao Kang, Hong Kong, June 1997.
19 Hong Kong is twelve hours ahead of Toronto in the summer because of
daylight saving time.
20 Fei, "Mian Huai Li Ming Ze."
21 Christopher Haffner, The Craft in the East, (Hong Kong, 1988) 424-5.
22 Haffner, Craft in the East, 424.
23 Haffner, Craft in the East, 424.
Photos
1 The translation of the letter on pages 280-281:
Dear Mr. Lee,
Thank you so much for your hospitality and for the thoughtful
arrangements you made during my visit to Hong Kong.
We returned to Beijing on February 5. I regret the delay in writing this
thank you, but I have been very busy because of Lunar New Year.
I trust you had a very happy New Year.
Wishing you good health and long life.
Jiang Zemin, February 22
(The tone in the original Chinese indicated the esteem held by Jiang for
Father. Jiang was then the Minister of Electronic Industries in Beijing.)
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Koike, Konosuke, 小池厚 之助. "Notes on Hong Kong" 香港 雜感. Yam-
abiko, bi-monthly newspaper published by Yamaichi Securities Co. Ltd.,
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Lee Hysan Estate Company, Limited. Memorandum and Articles of Asso-
ciation. Hong Kong, November 20, 1956.
Lee, R.C. "The Importance of Hong Kong to China." Speech given at the
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Lee, R.C. Correspondence.
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Surgeon). Hong Kong, 1965.
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East Asia. London, 1981.
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Liu, Chungshee H. Hainan, the Island and the People. Shanghai, 1939.
240 Building Bridges
Louis, William Roger. British Strategy in the Far East, 1919-1939.
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Luk, Bernard. "The Rise of a Civil Society in Hong Kong." Presented at
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Ng, Alice N.H. Lun, editor. The Quest for Excellence, A History of The
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Kong, 1921.
PHOTOS 相 片
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Photos 相 片 243
Father and Grandfather, circa 1909.
父親 與祖父 ， 約 於一九 〇 九年 。
244 Building Bridges 築橋
Father as a student at Oxford, 1923-27.
1923 年至 1927 年 ， 牛津 大學學 生時期 的父親 。
Photos 相 片 245
England, 1923-27
英國 , 1923 年至 1927 年
i^ather driving his triends.
父親 駕車接 載朋友
Father riding.
父 親騎馬
246 Building Bridges 築橋
矚
The Big House, 1920.
汴 M, . 1920，
Photos 相 片 247
248
Building Bridges 築橋
My p>arents" wedding, February 28, 1928, at St. JohnJS cathedral.
Photos 相 片 249
250 Building Bridges 築橋
Hainan Island, 1935-37
海南島 ， 1935 年至 1937 年
Father at plantation.
父親 於牧場
Father on a tractor.
父 親駕敎 農耕機
Photos 相片 251
252 Building Bridges 築橋
Hainan Island, 1935-37
海南島 ， 1935 年至 1937 年
Father with friends.
父親 與友人
Primitive transportation. Mango fork and knife designed
原:^ 台白^ 交 通工具 and crafted by Father.
八 父親 設計製 造的芒 果刀叉
Photos 相片 253
Family in Yishan, 1943. Left to right: Richard, Father, Deanna, Mother,
and me.
1943 年全家 在宜山 ， 左起 ： 哥哥 、 父親 、 姐姐 、 母 親及我 。
Family in Chongqing, 1945. Left to right: Mother, Deanna, Richard, me
and Father.
1945 年全家 在重慶 ， 左起 ： 母親 、 姐姐 、 哥哥 、 我 及父親 。
254 Building Bridges 築橋
The Lee Building, 1945.
♦Ht . 1945,^
Photos 相 片 255
Admiral Sir Cecil Harcourt, governor of postwar military government of
Hong Kong, with Mother (immediate right) and Fourth Aunt (immediate
left), April 11， 1946.
1946 年 4 月 11 日母親 〔右 二〕、 四姑姐 〔左 二〕 與
戰後香 港軍政 府總督 Sir Cecil Harcourt 合影 。
Sir Alexander and Lady Grantham with my parents (on right).
Hong Kong, 1950.
1950 年 父母親 〔右〕 和香 港總督 葛量洪 夫婦攝 於香港
On our tirst launch, 1947. Lett to right: Mother, Deanna, Richard, me
and Father.
1947 年 全家首 次出海 ， 左起 ： 母親 、 姐姐 、 哥哥 、 我 及父親 C
Family picture, 1949. Lett to right in front row: Deanna, Richard,
Christopher and me. Second Row: my parents.
1949 年的 全家福 ， 前 排左起 ： 姐姐 、 哥哥 、 弟 弟及我 ，
後排為 父母親 。
256 Building Bridges 条橋
Photos 相片 257
Mother at the opening of Sir Robert Hotung's Princess Theatre. Father
(second from left) and Sir Robert Hotung (seated) look on, December 1952.
1952 年 12 月母 親為何 東爵士 〔坐 者〕 的 樂宮戲 院開幕 剪綵，
左二 為父親
Launch picnic, 1955.
1955 年出 海野餐
258 Building Bridges 築橋
Father, 1952.
父親 ， 1952 年
Photos 相 片 259
Mother, 1952.
母親 ， 1952 年
260 Building Bridges 築橋
Father presenting ancient Chinese wine cup to President Kwame Nkrumah
of Ghana, 1960.
1960 年父 親致贈 中 國古酒 杯給加 納總理
Photos 相 片 261
01
4.-
leader of the Hong Kong Trade Mission to West Africa,
I960.
262 Building Bridges 築橋
Father swimming with Michael Jebsen in Als Fjord, 1963.
1963 年父親 與友人 在丹麥 內海海 峡游泳
Photos 相 片 263
Father with Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra.
父 親與英 國 亞歷 山 大公主
Father with Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret.
父 親與英 國瑪嘉 烈公主
264 Building Bridges 築橋
Proposed layout and alignment of the two-lane tunnel, January 1964.
1964 年 1 月 雙車道 海底隧 道計劃 圖及預 定路線
Chinese dinner party after signing of the Cross Harbour Tunnel contract,
Father (second from left), June 26, 1969.
1969 年 6 月 26 日 海底隧 道合約 簽 署後的 中 式慶 祝晚宴 ，
左二 為父親 。
Photos 相 片 265
Neville and me on either side of my parents and Ashley,
Hong Kong, 1968.
1968 年 我與衛 權同長 子偉雄 回港時 與父母 親合照
I posed with my parents just before Mother and 1 Ictt for Canada,
' August 1959.
1959 年 8 月母 親送我 赴加拿 大讀書 ， 行 前與父 母親攝 於機場 。
266 Building Bridges 築橋
The Freemason. Father as the Grand Master of Hong Kong and the
Far East, circa 1964.
父 親佩掛 共濟會 香港及 遠東區 區總監 的配飾 ， 約於 1964 年
Photos 相 片 267
My parents, 1968.
父母親 ， 1968 年
268 Building Bridges 築橋
The Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon.
曰本瑞 寶勳章
Father (on far right) awarded The Order ot the Sacred Treasure,
March 12, 1969.
1969 年 3 月 12 日父親 〔 後 排右一 〕 攝 於瑞寶 勳章授 勳典禮
Photos 相 片 269
The establishment of Yamaichi International (Hong Kong) Ltd.,
Hong Kong, July 5, 1972. Father on the far left.
1972 年 7 月 5 日山 一國際 〔 香港〕 有限公 司成立 ， 左一 為父親 。
Father (far left) with Konosuke Koike next to him, circa 1980.
父親 〔左 一〕 和小池 厚之助 〔左 二〕， 約於 1980 年。
270 Building Bridges 築橋
Launching of M.V. Grand Jade, (named after Mother, whose Chinese name
means "Jade'), a 30,000 DWT Bulker, at Koyo Dockyard on June 30, 1973.
1973 年 6 月 30 日以母 親命名 〔璧 為玉的 通稱〕 的 三萬噸 大玉號
新 貨輪在 日 本正 式下水
Mother at the launching.
大玉 號下水 典禮中 的母親
Photos 相 片 271
枕 GRAND JADEl*
272 Building Bridges 築橋
Father swimming at the Hong Kong Country Club, October 1975.
1975 年 10 月 父親在 香港鄉 村俱樂 部晨泳
Photos 相 片 273
Visit to Xinjiang Autonomous Region, 1977.
1977 年訪 問新疆 維吾爾 自 治區
With village leaders.
父親 與自治 區領袖
Father and village head. My parents.
父親 與自治 區領袖 父母親
274 Building Bridges 築橋
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From left to right: I.M. Pei, Father, W. Szeto, Hon chiF Architects Pei and Szeto show Sunning Plaza model, 1977.
Second Grandmother (in centre), on her 90th birthday, 19.76.
276 Building Bridges 築橋
My parents' Golden Wedding Anniversary, February 28, 1978,
at the Lee Gardens Hotel.
1978 年 2 月 28 日 父 母親金 婚紀念 日 攝於 香港利 園 酒店
feather with our son Ashley at ancestral graveyard in sunwui, January 1979.
1 9 7 9 ， 1 洎 5C l£ t .ft 誇 ,f - 一传 # 14 ^ 鲰诤^ ，呤 泰黄
278 Building Bridges 築橋
GuanOTZhou-Kowloon Through Train ceremony, 1979. Centre: Governor Sir Murray Maclehose.
Front row: fourth from right, second from right. Mother; fifth from left, Lian Weilin.
Photos 相 片 279
紀念 宋廣龄 a 象 名春主
基金會
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理 事聘書
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特比 IM*
Formal letter inviting Father to be administrator of the Song Qingling
Foundation from the honourary chairman Deng Xiaoping, 1982.
1982 年父親 的聘書
280 Building Bridges 築橋
Letter from Jiang Zemin to Father, 1981.' See endnotes (p. 237)
江 澤民在 1981 年 給父親 的信函
中华人 民共和 国电子 工业部
Photos 相片 281
282 Building Bridges 築橋
Father with President Li Xiannian, circa 1982.
父親與 中國國 家主席 李先念 ， 約於 1982 年 °
Photos 相 片 283
Father with leaders of China, circa 1982. Far left: YanTO shanOTkun next to Father, Third from ri^ht: Jian^ Zemin.
284 Building Bridges 築橋
Father with Gu Mu, Vice-Premier, circa 1982.
父 親與中 國國務 院副總 理谷牧 ， 約於 1982 年 。
Father welcomes the most Worshipful The Grand Master His Royal
Highness The Duke of Kent, October 28, 1982. Courtesy of Zetland Hall.
1982 年 10 月 28 日父親 以共濟 會香港 及遠東 區區總 監身份 ， 歡迎
最 高總監 根德公 爵來訪 。相 H 由 昏港 共濟會 泄蘭分 會提供
Photos 相片 285
Mother with Deng Yingchao, widow of Zhou Enlai.
母親 與周恩 來遺孀 鄧穎超
286 Building Bridges 築橋
Mother with President Yang Shangkun, 1989.
1989 年 母親和 中國國 家主席 楊尚昆
I revisited Chongqing, 1996. Photo taken by the Yangtse River.
1996 年我 回重慶 攝於長 江江畔
Photos 相 片 287
睿 ,£
My parents, 1981.
. 1981,^
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